Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving has arrived. The turkey is in the oven. The pumpkin pies are ready to be eaten. The cranberry and oranges are being ground together. 

 

The boys at Silver Dollar City last night

Some people are planning shopping trips. Many are travelling and taking vacations. Amber, Benjamin, David and I are on a little trip. I take a moment to pause and think about the things I am thankful for. 

1. Nick Baker – He is the guy speaking for me this week which means I get a week off. A time my family and a time of rest. People regularly ask me when he is going to speak again. Sunday is the day. The Water’s Edge couldn’t be in better hands! 

2. For the seasons of the year: apples and pumpkins and piles of leaves in the fall; snowmen and crisp air in the winter; tulips and green grass and warmer temperatures in the spring; and sweating and swimming in the summer. 

3. The Bible. God has a way of speaking to me every time I read it. Comforting me when I’m afflicted and afflicting me when I am comfortable. 

4. That I live in a country where I can vote. 

5. For the teachers who teach my two sons. The teachers make the boy’s lives better. 

6. For the basic physical necessities in life: food to eat, a house to live, and clothes to wear. Although the clothes don’t seem to fit as well as they used to.

7. Amber. She should actually be at the top and Nick Baker should be buried here in the middle. 

8. Benjamin and David. Playing jokes on each other, watching them grow, loving them, being loved by them. The whole father – son idea God came up with is a splendid idea. 

9. To live in a country with abundant resources: power and fresh water are a dream for many people in the world. 

10. Being able to run without pain again and being able to walk without pain the day after I run. 

11. That I’m saved by grace through faith. (Ephesians 2:8) 

12. That I serve a church with the greatest people I have ever known: People who are examples of giving, serving, forgiving, and loving. 

13. For my small group. It is an eclectic group of men and women who laugh, learn, and pray together. 

14. For a big, goofy Newfoundland dog Georgia who has been part of our family for twelve years. 

15. That God is with me and I have no reason to fear the present or the future. (Isaiah 43:5) 

16. The trails at Platte River State Park, dirt, mud, hills, deer, wild turkey, my Brooks Cascadia 7s, re-creation, and Sabbath. 

17. Prayer. Forgiveness. Good friends. Hope. Laughter. Grace. A place in God’s Kingdom. That I am loved by God. (John 15:13) 

Happy Thanksgiving! 

Craig