Happy Thanksgiving!

Wow! Time is flying by and soon we will enter the year of 2011. Can you believe it? Doesn’t it feel like Y2K was just last year? Remember the chaos?

As I prepare to enter another year, I can’t help but think of the many things that happened in my life this past year. I have a lot to be thankful for.

-          I am thankful for another year of life – I will soon be 25, but I often talk about how I still feel like I am 17…but perhaps a bit more grown up.

-          I am thankful for the time to dive into photography and the many opportunities that challenged me in exciting ways.

-          I am thankful for my Dgroup girls (High school and Junior High bible study) and all the things we have learned together.

-          I am thankful for good friends that bring joy to my heart - I miss those of you who are far away.

-          I am thankful for God’s divine patience, love, grace and mercy.

-          I am thankful for tulip fields for they take my breath away.

-          I am thankful for John - God has blessed me with a wonderful husband.

-          I am thankful for friends who took the time (and money) to come visit from faraway places.

-          I am thankful for many fun date nights.

-          I am thankful for my family – I don’t know what I would do without such wonderful people in my life.

-          I am thankful for John’s fast recovery after intestine surgery – seeing him hurting was so hard.

-          I am thankful for legs that can hike and a body that allows me to do nearly anything I want.

-          I am thankful for one more year of marriage and the ways it has challenged me to grow closer to the Lord.

-          I am thankful for all the times I got to see God’s creation while hiking and camping.

-          I am thankful for vacation time with family.

-          I am thankful for the opportunity to see many friends get married this past summer. May the lord bless their marriage all the days of their lives!

-          I am thankful for the beautiful coffee table my sister made just for me!

-          I am thankful for my new camera.

-          I am thankful for a new job.

-          I am thankful for a safe drive home despite the snow.

-          I am thankful for the gift of Jesus.

-          I am thankful for the ways life’s circumstances has strengthened my faith.

-          I am thankful for a car that has not broken down!

-          I am thankful for the opportunity to serve my community.

I am thankful for a lot of things – and a list like this one helps me remember the many ways God has provided. I am thankful for a loving and compassionate God who calls me his own!

I hope you all take the time to write a list of things you are thankful for. Sometimes it is easy to see the not-so-good-things in life, but if we take the time to reflect a bit, we begin to see that great things have happened as well.