thankful

Three Days In

| Marie Griffith

My thoughts for Monday School are on Thanksgiving. I expected to write about one of the many verses on thankfulness but when I read this story I knew this had to be in Monday School.

I like to think of myself as a grateful person, but I realize I’m more like the people in the story than I want to be.

Three days.

That’s how long the people of Israel traveled before they complained.

The first part of Numbers is about censuses, assignments of duties, march formations and camp set up. But by the end of chapter 10, the people of Israel are on the move. Verses 33 & 34 say, “So they set out from the mountain………..the cloud of the Lord was over them by day when they set out from the camp.”

After almost a full year at Mount Sinai the people of Israel began their journey to the Promised Land. Three days in “and the people complained….” But the complaining turned into something worse.

“The rabble with them began to crave other food and again the Israelites started wailing and said, ‘If only we had meat to eat. We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost-also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. But now we have lost our appetites; we never see anything but this manna!”   Numbers 11:4-6

The people did the same thing three days into the trek from the Red Sea to Mount Sinai. (Exodus 15) They complained about water. After they saw the Red Sea parted and walked to the other side on dry land…….they complained about water. This time they grumbled about food. The bread of heaven had ceased to satisfy. It wasn’t good enough. And with each complaint the people romanticized their time in Egypt.

We do the same. We may not say it out loud but we grumble in our hearts. The business we prayed for finally happens and as soon as it’s more challenging than expected we dream of the easy days before it started. The promotion we wanted demands more conflict resolution skills than we care for and we want to give up. We pray for good friends but distance ourselves when the relationships requires more give than take.

Like the people of Israel, we want the Promised Land but not the difficult journey. We want the privileges without the responsibility, the transformation without the work, the patience without the perseverance, and the faith without the fight. We want all the good stuff without any of the hard stuff.

Like the people of Israel, we forget. We forget the miracles, the healing, and the promises kept. And we choose not to remember how it really was in Egypt.

We would never say it but we ignore God’s Presence, doubt His promises and despise His provision.

And like the people of Israel, sometimes God gives us exactly what we think we want.

 

For the rest of this story read Numbers 11.

 

Photo by Jakob Owens on Unsplash

Sunset

| Marie Griffith

 

What a beautiful way to begin the wrapping up of a day. All of my scurrying around……checking off my “to do” list……working at this and planning that….

Comes to a stop.

As I look in wonder at the sunset. Taking it in.

The pinks and blues and light oranges come through the darkened trees…..

Moments later the colors fade…..the sky is darker….

And I’m thankful for the Giver of colorful sunsets.

 

 

Ambience

Overflowing

| Marie Griffith

I sit here in wonder………….my heart overflowing with thankfulness.

Thankful to the Giver. The One who gives me all that I have.

Thankful to the One who turns it all into something good. My mistakes and rebellion, my faith and doubt, the joy and trials and all the pain, the good parts and the ugly ones too.

In wonder of the Heart Changer. He’s mending the broken places and softening the hardened ones.

Praising the One who loves extravagantly and is teaching me to do the same. Patiently.

He never gives up on me. He’s always with me.

Thank You God.

You are a good, good Father.

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.            I Thessalonians 5:16-18

The Edge

Image | | Marie Griffith

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At the edge of my grandmother’s yard there was a rock wall that separated our yard from hers. My little sister and I jumped over those rocks a thousand times. We used the rock wall as a hurdle in the pretend race courses we created.

“Run around the pecan tree and back to the barn, from the barn to the apple tree then run and jump over the rock wall. To the gravel road back through the yard over the rock wall and down to the pines. Climb the mimosa tree and down the mimosa tree then up the gravel road to the mailbox. Whoever touches the mailbox first wins.”

I can’t remember who won most of the time. Maybe we took turns winning. I do remember that when we finished the course we felt we’d done something big. Our rock wall hurdle seemed tall way back then.

The rocks are still there……exactly as they were when I was a little girl. Now I can step over those large old rocks with ease.  img_4544

The rocks haven’t changed.

But I have.

“Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.”         Colossians 2:7

In response to the Daily Prompt Cusp.

Mama

| Marie Griffith

Mom’s wait was over one year ago today. Her last breath left her while all of us were gathered around her at home, holding her hands, telling her we love her, crying because we knew we’d miss her, but rejoicing that her fight for breath was finished.

One of my favorite memories of Mom is when I was a teenager living in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She, my younger sister and I were at Eastgate Mall and she wanted to eat a sandwich at Glen Gene’s deli.  We sat down to eat our sandwiches and we talked and laughed. She listened mostly. I don’t remember the words said or what I was wearing or the taste of the sandwich. I remember the deli wasn’t crowded. I remember her happy and smiling and there. And I remember the song that played while sitting in those yellow seats at Glen Gene’s deli that day.  The song was, “True” by Spandau Ballet.

So true
Funny how it seems
Always in time, but never in line for dreams
Head over heels when toe to toe
This is the sound of my soul
This is the sound 

“Always in time, but never in line for dreams…..”  Mom didn’t speak of the dreams she had for her life. She didn’t talk about how she thought her life would turn out. I wonder if it was what she thought or hoped it would be.

She loved Daddy and her quartet of daughters. She loved her home and the town she lived in. She was a woman of courage and she didn’t give up. She stayed in a hard marriage that turned into 51 years.

Mom was a hard worker and taught us to do the same. Anyone who ever tasted her cooking praised her work in the kitchen. She was a list-maker to the very end and funny, too. She had us laughing even in the last days.

She loved reminiscing and in the last year of her life she shared treasured memories with us as often as we would sit and listen.

She commented on one of my posts called “51” about a year before she left us and several months before Daddy passed.

Marie,

Thank you for the beautiful words you put together for Wayne and I. I do believe our four beautiful and wonderful daughters had so very much to do with us making the marriage work. Not only our girls, but our friends and families that were praying for us through all the difficult times. Ultimately, it was God and his love that got us through the rough times. Also, I knew Wayne was a godly person and did not want the life we were living with the drinking problem. I knew that one day he would ask God to remove the desire for drinking away from his mind, body and heart. God answered that prayer and today we continue trusing in God and his promises. Thanks to our four daughters for what they have given to us, their love and trust and our ten grandchildren.

Love,

Mom

Each time she spoke of her life she was thankful.

To God…..for us…..for Daddy….for her other family…… and her wonderful friends.  She was thankful for everything. She praised God.

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord.      Psalm 150:6 

I think she was in line for dreams and hers came true.

Enjoying the Season?

| Marie Griffith

imageI’m better at enjoying the season than I was three years ago. In another three I’ll be even better. I’ve learned to be still, be present, and more than anything…..be thankful.

Thank you, Jesus.

He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”      Psalm 46:10

I did what I said I wouldn’t do.  Last night I wasn’t enjoying the season.  I became annoyed with the clock.  It wouldn’t stop.  I needed more time to do the things that needed to be done.  Finally I realized that I was running out of time and was compelled to do the most pressing things.

I was an hour and a half late getting home because I had to make a large grocery store run to prepare for our get-together this weekend.  I did some stocking stuffer shopping, too.  I enjoyed the time in the store as I hummed along with the Christmas music in the background.

Once home, though, everything I needed to do flooded my mind and I slowly started to unravel.  My patience was missing and my family felt the impact of it.  In the midst of simplifying fractions, washing towels, looking for a Spanish II…

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Stop the Negativity

| Marie Griffith

This is the 5th week of my Live Like it Matters Challenge. I was going to issue a different challenge today but then this problem came to my attention. Not only did it come to my attention, I realize that I’ve been a participant…..I’ve been part of the problem.

At some time or another, we’ve all done this. We might not be characterized by it, but we’ve all done it.

We complain. We gripe. We gossip.

All of it is negative and none of it does any good. My challenge to all of us is to STOP. Stop the negativity.

Your friend hurt your feelings. You tell your friend, but not the one who hurt your feelings. That’s gossip.  More than likely, it was an innocent misunderstanding that could be easily resolved with a conversation with the right person. The right person is the one that hurt your feelings, not the other friend.

Some things are changing at work. You don’t understand it and you don’t like it. You complain about it to any co-worker that will listen. Every day you think and talk about what you dislike about your work and the company
you work for. The only one you don’t complain to is the one who might be able to explain why things are changing.

Your husband and kids cleaned the house while you worked late. You notice the counter has a few crumbs that weren’t wiped away and the clothes in the dryer haven’t been folded. You gripe about the crumbs and grumble about the unfolded clothes instead of noticing the swept floors, the cleaned mirrors, the empty kitchen sink, and the lit candles.  6794428-free-stop-wallpaper

Stop the complaining. Stop the gossip. And stop the griping. You’re not only bringing yourself down, you’re taking others with you. Stop.

Instead have the right conversation with the right person. Gather the right information from the right person about the changes at work. If you don’t like it and can’t see that you will ever like it, update your resume and find another job. See what good things others are doing even when it’s not the way you would do it.

We must stop being negative. See what you have, instead of focusing on what you don’t. Be thankful. Be positive. You can choose what you think and say.

You can’t make a positive difference in others’ lives if you’re negative.

Choose to live like it matters.

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

Philippians 4:8 (NIV)

Praise

| Marie Griffith

Praise the Lord.
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty heavens. Praise him for his acts of power;
praise him for his surpassing greatness.
Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,
praise him with the harp and lyre, praise him with timbrel and dancing,
praise him with the strings and pipe, praise him with the clash of cymbals,
praise him with resounding cymbals. Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord.
Psalm 150:1-6

Thank you God for smoothing out the rough places.

Thank you that Mom decided to live instead of waiting to die.

Thank you for healing me in places that I didn’t even know were broken.

Thank you for changing hearts.

Thank you for those that have the courage to do hard things.

Thank you for my children and every conversation, every laugh, every challenge, and every tear I’ve shared with them. I love being their mom!

Thank you for my husband. It is through my marriage that You have taught me the most.

Thank you for new friends, new perspectives, new life and renewed hope.

Thank you, God.