... a Thankful recap

I have loved reading my friends (/your) Facebook posts, as they have been posting what they are thankful for this month.  For some reason, I didn't really join in.  Ok, there were several reasons.  Among them: I stalk other people on Facebook.  I don't like being stalked as much.  It is entertaining to know superficial details about people and hard for me to be real.  And sometimes my grump-a-licious self doesn't want to be thankful.  I would rather complain. Thank-you-very-much.  Humph.  Since that isn't really a justifiable reason to withhold thankfulness, I'm trying to catch up some here:

I am thankful that Waco does not look like I expected when Daniel signed the contract with Baylor.  I had only been through west Texas a couple of times and figured the whole state was one giant tumbleweed that smelled like an oil refinery.  I love our little wooded corner of Waco with its big trees and hills!

I am thankful that I get to have a puppy.  Daisy brings so many funny moments to my day (like this morning when she realized that she could see me through the office windows and couldn't figure out how to get up there to me).  She also gives me a taste of what having kids will be like.  For example, I am not really grossed out by fishing slobbery bits of destroyed toy out of her mouth any more. (I have had lots of practice at that one).  Right now a slobbery squeaky ball is being rolled up and down my leg as an open invitation to play fetch.

I am thankful that I get days of sunshine in November living here.  Sorry Seattle, but I don't miss 45 and raining every single day for 3 months straight.

I am thankful for Acts Christian Fellowship.  I know God has big stuff in store for us at this church and people have been over the top welcoming to us there.

I am thankful for how much better I feel being gluten-free and how many products are now available.

I am thankful for orange-glazed sweet potatoes.  Seriously, these are among the most amazing food items of all time.  Some (i.e. Daniel) might say that I hid them and single-handedly finished off the leftovers. :) http://allrecipes.com/recipe/orange-sweet-potatoes-2/detail.aspx

I am thankful for true, deep, caring friendships.  They make life livable and are precious beyond words.

I am thankful for my family and their visit last week.  I know that not everyone gets to have family that laughs at inside jokes and enjoys being together.  I don't even want to imagine the heartbreak that that must be.  My family is such a blessing.  They are such a kind, helpful, and loving bunch! :)  They even put up with my less than hospitable animals who picked the week to get sick/generally make messes.  A certain amount of affection for the furry ones might have been lost, but my family was still gracious.

I am thankful I get to be married to Daniel.  I couldn't possibly have found a more patient, kind, hard-working guy.  It is uncanny how well he understands me and is able to put my thoughts and feelings into words.  He never gives up on me and gives the best hugs.

I am thankful that God is good and never lies.  My feelings might lie and Satan certainly lies, but my God does NOT.  I love this quote: "By demonic concoction, many of us have come be believe that our behavior and thought life reveals more about who and what we are than what the Bible says about who and what we are." - Ralph Harris, God's Astounding Opinion of You.

My God has called me righteous in Christ, so I don't need to earn/prove anything.  My God did not give me a spirit of fear but of power, and love, and self-control (2 Tim 1:7).  My God calls me loved, forgiven, and free.  He did not come to condemn me (or let me wallow in self-condemnation) but  to set me free (John 3:17).  I am so used to mentally adding asterisks to these promises... surely He doesn't mean me, right here, right now.  But God does not lie when He says this about me, nor does He lie when He says it about you.  And for that I am extremely thankful.