A Time of Thankfulness -Day #5 A November Challenge

Day #5 of the Thankfulness Challenge.  Today I am thankful for my KIDS!  Psalms 127:3 says "Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him."  WOW!  I feel so blessed to have my two kids Jonathan and Josephine!  They are truly a blessing from above.  I can't tell you all the emotions I felt the day I found out I was going to be a father.  It was a game changer! Then the day came and my little boy Jonathan was born then three years later Josephine came along!  I remember driving home from the hospital thinking to myself, Now what do I do?  I was scared, excited, overjoyed, every emotion that you can imagine was running through me.  A new chapter of my life had begun.  I was not just a husband to my wife, but I was now "DAD" 

I am a very proud dad!  My kids are awesome and I have a lot to be thankful for about them.   Here is just one example, when my son comes to me and tells me he wants to be like me or when my daughter comes and cuddles up to me and says "daddy I love you!"  Wow!  that just takes me back!  It melts my heart into mush and I am reminded once again how much I love my kids!

As a father, I have a great responsibility to mold and shape the lives of my kids.  I am responsible for leading them, guiding their life decisions, helping them make the right choices.  Showing them how to become young man and woman who love the Lord with all their heart, soul, and strength.  With this in mind, it gives me a little glimpse of what our Heavenly Father must see of us!  His children!

Yes, Children are truly a gift from the Lord!  I am a blessed man to have the opportunity to have two wonderful kids!  I look forward to coming home everyday to see them!  It is amazing how all the troubles of the day can seem to just fade away when the garage door opens and I see my two kids running out to greet me with smiles on their faces and open arms saying "Daddy!" 

I am very thankful for my kids, they are truly "the apple of my eye"  I am a blessed man to have them as my kids.  So Yes, I am truly thankful for my kids! 

I love you with all my heart Jonathan and Josephine! 

A Time of Thankfulness -Day #4 A November Challenge

Day #4 of the Thankfulness Challenge.  What I am thankful for today is my Dad!  I owe a lot to my Dad.  I am the man I am today because of him.  He has always been such a great example to me.  It is hard to put in words just how thankful I am for him! 

He has been an inspiration to me and how I should raise my own son.  My dad is the type of person that would give his own shirt of the top of his back for you.  He is a very loving, giving, just overall a very generous man.  My dad has taught me to always be the best that I can be, to always shoot for the top and achieve my goals.  He has taught me to never give up and keep shooting for the stars.  My dad has also taught me to love God with all my heart, mind, soul & strength.  He has been an example of what a Godly Father should be.

I must stop and tell this story about my dad, this is one that has been and always will be in my mind about my dad.  I remember coming home one night, and walking to my room, I saw my dad in his room, what he was doing made an impact on my life.  I saw my dad on his knees in prayer!  That touched my life in a tremendous way!  I knew that my dad was praying for me and our family!  I knew he was doing battle for us!  WOW!  Thank you dad once again for being such an example to follow!  Thank you for shaping me to be the man that I am today!  I owe you so much!  I am very thankful for you, my dad of all dads!

I consider my dad to be a very courageous man and that he has given me a valuable legacy to pass down to my son! 

I love the lyrics of this song, it describes how I feel about my dad.  Very Thankful!!!!

A Time of Thankfulness -Day #3 A November Challenge

Day #3 in the November Thankfulness Challenge.  Today, I am thankful for my wife! Yes, you knew I would not leave her out of this challenge!   Proverbs 18:22 says "The man who finds a wife finds a treasure, and he receives favor from the Lord"  I must say, I definitely found a treasure!  For over eighteen years, my wife has been my confidant, my friend, my true sweetheart!  I have never met anyone who is more willing to go the extra mile.  She is someone who is always willing to put others first before herself!  She is an amazing woman!  I can't believe how truly blessed I am to have her as my wife!  She is also an amazing mother to our children!  It is so nice to know that I have someone that is so amazing to come home to!  Someone who is always there for me through it all!  I am not saying we have had the perfect marriage, we have had our share of trials, However, we have stuck with each other through the thick and the thin!  Learning to accept each other as who we are.  We have learned to find strength in each others weaknesses.  We have learned to build each other up when we are down.  We have learned to laugh and cry with each other.  My wife is truly a treasure!  As the lyrics of our wedding songs says....

"I cherish the treasure, the treasure of you!  Lifelong companion, I give myself to you!  God has enabled me, to walk with you faithfully! and I cherish the treasure, the treasure of you!" 

So YES, I am extremely thankful for my wife!  Thank you sweetheart for always being there for me, for all that you do for me and our family!  I LOVE YOU AND I AM VERY THANKFUL FOR YOU!

A Time of Thankfulness -Day #2 A November Challenge

For this day of the Thankfulness Challenge, I chose something that I have found myself on both sides of the fence.  I also believe it is one that we all have found ourselves in need of or needing to give.  Today, I am thankful for FORGIVENESS!  What would we do without it?  Like I said earlier, I have been on both sides of this.  Needing forgiveness and having to forgive.  I am not sure what side is easier to be on, However, I am so thankful for it!  Ultimately I am thankful that I have a God in heaven who is faithful to forgive me for my many shortcomings in this life, but I too must be willing to forgive those who may have hurt me, offended me, or did something to me that caused me to get angry or upset or to harbor a grudge.  I too must be willing to forgive and not harbor ill feelings or grudges.  This sometimes is a hard thing to do.  However we must.  Mark 11:25 says "But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins too." (NLT) So whatever side of the fence you may be on today, be thankful for forgiveness, if you are in need of forgiveness, seek it.  If you have been hurt or are harboring a grudge against someone, then be willing to forgive him or her or whatever the situation may be. Begin to open yourself up to forgiveness.  You will be surprised as to what happens. 

“You can't undo anything you've already done, but you can face up to it. You can tell the truth. You can seek forgiveness. And then let God do the rest.” -Source Unknown

A Time of Thankfulness -A November Challenge

November is the time of the year we usually turn our attention to "Turkey" and OH OH, time to really start thinking about that Christmas shopping. Come on now, we are all guilty as charged! However, as this is the first day of November, I would like to start off this month and the days leading into Thanksgiving as a moment to Stop and reflect each day on something that I am thankful for. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 says "Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus." So are you with me? Will you take up this challenge and take some time out of each day to pick something you are thankful for and just think about it? I believe you will be amazed and blessed at the same time to see how blessed you are. You will also see how much you have to be thankful for!

The first thing that I am thankful for on this first day of November is my SALVATION. Anyone who knows me knows that I have no problem letting you know who my first love is! Therefore, the very first thing that I want to be thankful for this November is my Salvation! John 3:16 says that "For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believes in Him will not perish, but have everlasting life!" Think about that! The very God of the Universe loves me so much that he sent His only son to die for me so that I might live eternally with Him one day in heaven! That is so awesome! I stand in awe when I think about that! But what makes it even greater is this is a FREE gift to anyone who will receive it!

So on this very first day of November, I want to pause, reflect, and be thankful for my salvation! Thank you Lord for sending your Son and saving me! It's just amazing and I am thankful!

A Little Glimps Of Heaven

I had the greatest time the other day. I took my daughter out for a Father/Daughter date. It was a great time just the two of us. We had a blast! We went to watch Disney's Princess's on Ice. My little girl kept telling me that I "had" to go watch the princesses, but truth be told, I did not mind one bit because I got to spend it with my little girl.

This got me thinking though, I am having a blast with my little girl, just the two us, how much does our Heavenly Father want to spend time with us? How He must long for us to just have some quality time with us.

There are too many distractions out there called "life." We must make every effort we can to spend some quality time with our Heavenly Father. I know, I am a chief offender of letting the distractions of life get in the way of my quality time with my Heavenly Father. However, I do know as I make the effort to spend that quality time with my Heavenly Father, I get to know him better and better and I see myself growing in Him. It's all about the RELATIONSHIP!

I can't be expected to have a great relationship with my daughter if I don't spend that quality time with her, same way with God, how can we be expected to have a great relationship with our Heavenly Father if we don't spend quality time with him in prayer and study of His word? Think about it.

Especially as we enter the Passion Week. This time of the year should be a reminder to us all of what our Lord and Saviour did for us. So make the effort! Get a little taste of Heaven on Earth. Spend some quality time with your son/daughter, get to know them better! Also don't forget about time with your Heavenly Father this week!

On Your Mark, Get Set, Go!

It just seems like yesterday, but 2010 is gone and a new year has begun. It is the classic time where everyone, YES, I do mean everyone, whether you want to admit it or not, has written, said, or even thought of a New Year's Resolution for 2011. The problem with New Year's Resolutions are that many if not all are broke within the first week! I include myself in that mix as well. All good intentions were there, this was going to be the year that you were going to stick to it, unfortunately, you along with me joinced the masses and brok your resolution. So what are we to do? How can we put our best foot forward and stick to those resolutions?

Well, here is a little encouragement to you and Lord willing, it will help you keep those Resolutions and not become a casualty to New Year's Resolutions broken!

• Set Realistic Goals. "Don't bit off more than you can chew." to use an old saying
• Write them down! This way you can refer back to them and they will server as a reminder to you.
• Find someone to encourage you to keep your resolutions. There is strength in numbers.
• Don't forget to REWARD yourself when you meet one of your goals.
• REMEMBER it's a MARATHON, not a SPRINT...Take it day by day...and pace yourself.
  
  

So what do you say? Are your ready to join me? Are you ready to NOT break your resolutions this year and actually keep them? I know I am. So.....

On Your Marks.....Get Set....GO!!!!