November 27, 2008

• Thanksgiving: A carton of chocolate milk reminds me to count my blessings

  Several weeks ago, I ended up at McDonalds for a free latté. As I was sitting sipping my latté and reading, a young mother and her preschooler sat down not far from me.

  "Oooo–chocolate milk!"

  I looked over to their table and I couldn't help but smile. There was a sweet little boy sitting and looking at his chocolate milk and simply delighting in it, just beaming, finding great joy in having his very own carton of chocolate milk...and that was all even before he began to drink it!

   

  After the smile, a sense of sadness and then conviction come into my heart. How often do I take delight in such simple things like a carton of chocolate milk? How unthankful and ungrateful I am for all God has given me. How much I take things for granted. How much I covet and lust after more things. My heart is bent toward dissatisfaction and discontentment. Oh, how I need a heart of thankfulness. Do I rejoice in the small things as this little boy did? When was the last time such a small thing as a carton of chocolate milk brought me such gladness? Do I see all I have as undeserved blessings coming down from the Father of lights?

  No wonder that in Psalm 103 David reminds his soul and all that is within him to Bless the LORD and to forget not His benefits. As follow David's lead we find a wonderful tonic for our sinful tendency to crave more and more and a sweet remedy our wretched propensity to be discontent and grumble. When we begin to recollect all we have and remember the One from whom all blessings flow, the One who has given it all to us through His chesed kindness and grace, and the fact that we deserve absolutely none of it, we can't help but begin to break out of our whining and murmuring.

  Count Your Blessings
  (Johnson Oatman, Jr.-1897)
  
  When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed,
  When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
  Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
  And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
  
  Refrain
  
  Count your blessings, name them one by one,
  Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
  Count your blessings, name them one by one,
  And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
  
  Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
  Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
  Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
  And you will keep singing as the days go by.
  
  Refrain
  
  When you look at others with their lands and gold,
  Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;
  Count your many blessings. Wealth can never buy
  Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.
  
  Refrain
  
  So, amid the conflict whether great or small,
  Do not be disheartened, God is over all;
  Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
  Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.
  
  Refrain

  Once again as I did last year (see my entries titled "Reasons for Thanks Giving" here), I've been reflecting on all the blessings God has given me. I know this is something I should do more often to cultivate an ongoing attitude of thanksgiving.

  Here are some of the things I'm thankful for:

  1. Page clips. (No, in case you're wondering, believe it or not, that's not a Lloyd-Jones book there in the photo, but the book "Grace" by R.T. Kendall.) Page clips are a must gadget for the avid reader. They hold the pages open to your book, so your hands are free to make notes, write, eat, drink and so forth all while you're still reading. Kind of like chewing gum and walking. The page clips are simply wonderful. I don't leave home without them. Truly. I have one in my Bible cover and one in my backpack and a couple others around the house. A couple of them are from my husband's great aunt, who went to glory several years ago. She played piano and used them to hold open her hymn books. So as I use them, I often remember her for her faithfulness to the Lord and her piano playing at church.

  2. Sight and the ability to read and write. I'd have no use for the page clips if I couldn't read. I so take it for granted that I can read and write so I can read, study and write about God's Word. Plus I've also now got some nifty contact lenses and a nice pair of progressive lens eyeglasses that allow me to read and do distance well, another thing to be thankful for! Plus I've really come to appreciate my times away walking and sitting outside, in those special places where I can see God and meet with Him in the beauty of His creation

  3. My iPod. Pretty much gets used daily. Charlie Hall's "The Bright Sadness" and Downhere's "Ending Is Beginning" are getting a lot of play, and, goes without saying, sermons by "the Doctor" (Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones).

  4. Hearing. And, of course, I'd have no use for my iPod if I couldn't hear. Again, a gift from God. Even more so for me since when I was really young (before I was a year old), I lost my hearing for a period of time (I don't remember any of this of course) and then it came back again months later. No one ever figured out why I lost it or why it returned. My family was nominally religious, so no one ever attributed its return to God, but I do! In spite of this, too often I take my hearing for granted.

  5. New friends.  A year ago now, I wrote the following (based "The Life and Diary of David Brainerd"):

  A short time after we left our church home [that was in September 2007], I heard a song on my itunes that reminded me of a friend from our old church, at which point I became quite unhappy and distressed and began to weep. However, soon after this God brought me to these wonderful words of Brainerd's reassuring me of God's sovereign goodness to us in giving us friends:

  Wednesday, March 6 [1745]...Towards night, and in the evening, was visited by some friends, some of whom, I trust, were real Christians; who discovered an affectionate regard to me, and seemed grieved that I was about to leave them; especially seeing I did not expect to make any considerable stay among them, if I should live to return from New England. O how kind has God been to me! how has he raised up friends in every place, where his providence has called me! Friends are a great comfort; and it is God that gives them; it is he makes them friendly to me. "Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits."

  I am trusting that my God will show His kindness to me by raising up friends in a new church home, where His providence might call me.

  In the past year God has raised up "friends for me in every place, where his providence has called me" including:

  • here on Xanga.  I thank God for all of you, especially those of you who been so supportive and have sent me words of encouragement, and
  • in our church. Last week a new church friend treated me to lunch at Panera Bread, which is one of my favorite places. Good food and good conversation is always a wonderful combination.

  Indeed my God has shown His kindness to me and I am trusting that He will continue to raise up friends for indeed they are "a great comfort," as Brainerd reminds us.

  6. My three wonderful children, make that four wonderful children, since we now have a son-in-law. We also now have a "granddaughter," well, not exactly, to clarify–that'd be a cat, Zoe.

  We have a long-standing tradition in our house (actually it dates back to before we moved to this house): our Christmas stockings are hung up all year long by our fireplace and each stocking has a family member's name on it (just glitter and glue–that's about my speed for arts and crafts). Anyhow, now I have two more more stockings to get ready for this Christmas.

  7. My husband, who continues to love me in spite of myself and shows me chesed lovingkindness each and every day. He continue to love me as Christ loves the Church. That includes him telling me not what I want to hear but what I need to hear. He guards my soul and helps me to keep my eyes on Jesus and to consider Jesus when I'm tempted to give up and stop running the race set before me.

  For example, he recently shared the following quotes (from "Pilgrims of Promise" by C.D. Baker) with me:

  Fixing the eyes on failure is like staring into a chasm, for it draws us to disaster.
  
  We must not let our regrets rule us, else they become who we are.
  
  We are not called to know all things, but to trust the One who does.

  If you've been reading my blog for any length of time, you know how appropriate these are.

  8. My God, who through Jesus Christ continues to uphold and sustain me and love me in spite of myself and gives me all things for godliness, so I might one day stand before His throne all to His praise, honor and glory. And all things does include hard times, trials, failures and difficulties and even broken relationships and a broken heart, all with the intent of shaping and refining me into His Son's image. He's brought me through a lot of sadness and pain, but more and more I am growing in my trust that His smiling face was indeed behind the frowning providence, that his plans and purposes are absolutely perfect, even when they seem to be far from perfect.

  Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
  But trust Him for His grace;
  Behind a frowning providence
  He hides a smiling face.

  His purposes will ripen fast,
  Unfolding every hour;
  The bud may have a bitter taste,
  But sweet will be the flower.

  Blind unbelief is sure to err
  And scan His work in vain;
  God is His own interpreter,
  And He will make it plain.

  (from William Cowper's "God Moves in a Mysterious Way").

  I had most of that already written but then we sang "He Leadeth Me" in BSF yesterday and thought it was so fitting to share here as I thank and praise God for His continued leading and can be assured He will be faithful to bring me home one day. (Check out the story behind the hymn here.)

  He Leadeth Me

  He leadeth me, O blessèd thought!
  O words with heav’nly comfort fraught!
  Whate’er I do, where’er I be
  Still ’tis God’s hand that leadeth me.

  Refrain
  
  He leadeth me, He leadeth me,
  By His own hand He leadeth me;
  His faithful follower I would be,
  For by His hand He leadeth me.

  Sometimes mid scenes of deepest gloom,
  Sometimes where Eden’s bowers bloom,
  By waters still, over troubled sea,
  Still ’tis His hand that leadeth me.

  Refrain

  Lord, I would place my hand in Thine,
  Nor ever murmur nor repine;
  Content, whatever lot I see,
  Since ’tis my God that leadeth me.

  Refrain

  And when my task on earth is done,
  When by Thy grace the vict’ry’s won,
  E’en death’s cold wave I will not flee,
  Since God through Jordan leadeth me.

  Refrain

  For what things are you counting your blessings this Thanksgiving?
  How have you seen God's hand providing for you and leading you over this past year?

  Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.
  Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits...
  (Psalm 103:1-2)

  I thank God for all of you and wish all of you a very HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

  • 8:31 AM
  • 2 Comments