A Basket Full of Thankfulness
Today is Thanksgiving Day.
“O come, let us sing for joy to the Lord,
Let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation,
Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving,
Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms,
For the Lord is a great God
And a great king above all gods,
In whose hand are the depths of the earth,
The peaks of the mountains are His also.
The sea is His, for it was He who made it,
And His hands formed the dry land.
Come let us worship and bow down,
Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.
For He is our God,
And we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand.
Today, if you hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts,”
Psalm 95:1-8
My favorite family tradition as we sit around our Thanksgiving table is to pass a small basket and place a dry corn kernel into the basket and share what we are thankful for. Today, we are creating new traditions. My husband and I have the privilege of sharing this holiday with our oldest daughter and her family at her in-laws home. Since the rest of our daughters will be celebrating with friends and family all over the world, I sent them messages and asked them to share what they are thankful for so I could hold each one of them close to my heart today. 
Rachel
Thankful for good health. Warm house and clothes. Two amazing children. A husband who works hard so I can stay home. I think Hanna and Ellie are thankful for each other. They are good buddies.
Jess
I’m so thankful for Gods grace and love on our family and his faithfulness to get us through hard times. I’m thankful for a husband who follows Gods leading for our family and how hard he works to provide for us. I’m thankful for our four children and all the joy they bring us. I’m thankful for family and friends and our church community.
Bethany
I am thankful for an opportunity to live a life of purpose in Christ. For a god who loves me unconditionally, Adoptrd me as his child, forgave me before I was even born, has saved me from the darkness and given me light. I am thankful for his truth that has set me free. I am thankful for the blessing of life, family, friends, a home, a job, and the gift to choose each day to serve Christ.
Bekah
Although it has been quite the experience, I am very thankful for the time we have had in Grenada thus far. There have been many ups and downs through medical school classes and tests, adapting to life on an island, and learning how to be married, but God has been so faithful in this time! I am thankful for God’s continual reminders of his love and power and grace and creativity through the beauty all around us! I am thankful for my parents and sisters who has been so supportive and encouraging to me and Ashkon! I am thankful for the blessing of being an aunt and seeing how amazing God is through each of my nieces’ and nephews’ lives! Even though far away, they have gotten me through more days than they know, seeing their adorable faces on FaceTime or even in the pictures on our walls! Lastly, I am thankful for my husband! It has been pretty amazing to see Ashkon working so hard to achieve his goal and getting that much closer to becoming a doctor! I am thankful for a husband who can always make me laugh, who continually points me toward the Lord and who will be by my side for all the future adventures God has waiting for me!
Ashkon: I am thankful for God’s faithfulness over the past year and a half. He has always taken me where I need to go and now that Bekah and I are married and living in Grenada, He has once again come and shown me (now us) that He is unwavering. No matter where we go, He will be there and we have nothing to worry about. Our worries pale in comparison to His greatness and both Bekah and I have been able to see that firsthand during our time here in Grenada.
When I think of all the things I am thankful for I can not contain my JOY!
This year has been full of blessings AND challenges.
Remembering the BLESSINGS brings a big smile to my face…
Two new grand babies born-love you Calvin and Hanna,
Other 4 grandchildren; Jorde, Zeke, Reese and Elliana thriving, growing cuter every day, reaching milestones, developing their own personalities,
My fantastic husband turned 60 and we had two fabulous celebrations for him, one at Disneyland with the entire gang and one at a Giants game with friends and family,
Four amazing sons-in-law that love and cherish my daughters,
Serving in a leadership role in a women’s ministry and working with awesome women,
My husband is still my best friend and constant encourager,
Sharing the birth of this blog with my daughters and hearing that people are being encouraged
AND
Remembering the CHALLENGES has helped me remember how much God loves me….
The miracle of recovery after a life threatening illness in my daughter’s mother-in-law’s life
God protecting grand babies during bouts of serious illnesses,
New beginnings in my relationship with my dad,
My slow but steady recovery from a serious back injury…
In all these circumstances God has been with me. Through the joys and sorrows, through the tears and laughter, I know that I am His. And for this, I am forever THANKFUL!
Happy Thanksgiving!
What are you most thankful for this Thanksgiving?
