Saying "No"

Thank You for saying "No" to some of my most desperate prayers.  In hindsight, it really is the best thing.

Another Blessed Year

Thank You for another year filled with blessings.

Courage

Thank You for the courage to do the things I hate the most...confrontation. 

Work Opportunities for Teens

Thank You for job opportunities for teenagers.  It has helped mine earn his own money!

Heat

Thank You for warm heat when it is chilly outside.

Making Someone's Day

Thank You for the resources to make a birthday a little bit different for a wonderful girl.

Relaxing

Thank You for helping me to just be able to relax at home.

God in the Flesh

Thank You for sending Yourself in Your Son to become man like me in order to be the greatest gift that I have ever known.  I no longer have to pay a price I am unable to pay thanks to Jesus.  Thank You.

Santa

Thank You for a man named St. Nicholas that gave an example of giving without wanting something in return.

Safe Road Trip

Thank You for a safe trip on the interstate.

Wireless Printers

Thank You for wireless printers.  It is nice to put it anywhere in the office and still be able to print.

Applebee's Potato Soup

Thank You for delicious potato soup from Applebee's on a cold, damp winter day.

Finding the Contact

Thank You for helping me find my contact.  Funny how a little piece of plastic can consume your life until you find it.

Diet Mountain Dew

Thank You for Diet Mountain Dew.  It helps me wake up in the morning!

Pillow

Thank You for a comfortable pillow to lay my head on when I really need to just rest.

Mechanical Know How

Thank You for my mechanical know how when it comes to fixing cars.  Thank You for a father who showed me how to do so much of it.

Penicillin

Thank You for the medicine of penicillin.  It is wonderful when you have strep throat.

In-House Doctors

Thank You for doctors who still come to you.  Especially at work and especially for free.

Your Healing Stripes

Thank You for taking the beating to heal me. 

“He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” ~ 1 Peter 2:24

Sunshine

Thank You for warm sunshine on a cold, late Autumn day.

Breath

Thank You for another day that I can wake up breathing.

Protection

Thank You for protection, even when I'm the one that needs protecting from myself.

Naps

Thank You for giving me the time to take naps during a busy holiday season.

Stress Balls

Thank You for those soft, squishy stress relief balls.  They are wonderful.

Electricity

Thank You for the electricity that powers my life.  Without it, life might just be a bit duller.

Water

Thank You for water.  It's life giving ability.  It's free availability.  Thank You for the Living Water.

Contact Lenses

Thank You for contact lenses.  What a crazy, little invention that helps us see.

Eye Doctors

Thank You for eye doctors.  They can make the blind see again!

Provision

Thank You for the provision of food.  So many times I take for granted the good quality and quantity of food that I have available to me.  May I never forget the many that simply do not have anything to eat.

Youth After Your Heart

Thank You for youth that choose You over so many other things in life.  Bless them for their decisions.

Speech To Text

Thank You for speech to text on mobile phones.  It makes texting so easy!

Techy Friends

Thank You for all my "techy" friends.  Especially, the ones that share cool articles with me.

Pod-Casts

Thank You for the creation of pod-casts so that messages can be heard over and over for those that need it.

Onion Bagels & Garden Veggy Cream Cheese

Thank You for delicious onion bagels and yummy Garden Vegetable Cream Cheese.

Great Word for Today

Thank You for your great word today!  

"Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth."~1 John 3:18

I knew talk was cheap!  Now I know it is Biblical.

Just Being With Me

Thank You for just being with me when I feel very alone.

Vanilla Coke

Thank You for Vanilla Coke.  This is a wonderful drink that tastes very close to cream soda. Yum!

Honey Bun Cake

Thank You for something so delicious as the Honey Bun cake.  It is truly an amazing dessert.

Peanut Butter

Thank You for peanut butter.  It is one of my favorite, simple snacks.

The First Thanksgiving

Thank You for those first pilgrims that braved a new world and met new people.

Macaroni & Cheese

Thank You for macaroni and cheese that is easy to fix.

Revealing Your Plan

Thank You for revealing a little of Your plan for me this morning.

I have often thought of the mess I made of my life as a great big ball of string.  God said, "Let's start straightening some of that string out."  Some string has to be thrown away, other string will be saved for later.

This morning You reveal that I need that saved string so I can make a straight rope.  You need me to help save people and string just isn't going to do it.  I need rope.  Strong, straight rope.  What a great revelation.

November Rain

Thank You for the cold November rain in the mountains.

Bold Pastors

Thank You for pastors bold enough to preach the truth!  Bold enough to follow Your heart and listen to You and now the world.

Healing

Thank You for already healing me!

"But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed."~Isaiah 53:5

Your Home

Thank You for Your home that You have built for me.  At the end of the journey, it's nice to come home.

Home

Thank You for home.  At the end of the journey, it is nice to come home.

Your Spirit

Thank You for allowing me to listen to Your Holy Spirit and seize opportunities to share You when I least expect it to happen.

Safe Journeys

Thank You for providing safe journey when we take for granted that You are guiding us.

Knowing The Depths of Your Love

Thank You for showing me just how crazy You love me!

"And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."~Matthew 28:20b

"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."~Romans 8:38-39

Look, it isn't my choice. God's love cannot be separated from me. No matter what, no matter who, no matter...He is always with me and He loves me. This goes for you too.

Your Voice At From the Ocean

Thank You for being able to speak to me when I stand at a great big ocean at night and letting me know that You know my name, the hairs on my head and that not only do You have the ocean under control; You have my life under control.  YOU ARE AWESOME!

Your Thoughts Of Me

Thank You for thinking of me...a lot!

How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand - when I awake, I am still with you.  ~Psalms 139:17-18

Your Ocean Paintings

Thank You for the brilliant display of colors in the sky over the ocean.  Both first thing in the morning and last thing in the evening.

 

The Ocean At Night

Thank You for Your awesome ocean at night lit by an incredible moon.  Just like with the Fall leaves, You show off in more ways as the ultimate artist!!!

Veterans

Thank You for the very brave men and women who have served and are serving the great nation I live in.  Bless them extra special today!

Your Strength

Thank You for Your strength in my weakness.

Medicine

Thank You for the awesome invention of medicine.  It makes dealing with a cold soooo much better.

Leftover Doughnuts

Thank You for those leftover doughnuts that are still so good!

Knowing Where You Are

Thank You for specifically telling me where You are!

"For I have chosen you and will not throw you away. Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand."~Isaiah 41:9b-10(NLT)

Songs

Thank You for putting a soundtrack of songs in my heart and my head everyday!

To Serve

Thank You for giving the opportunity to serve as You would serve.  And because of that opportunity, thank You for allowing my son to see how fortunate he really is in his life.

Young Hearts

Thank You for young hearts in the bodies of teenagers that have a thirst and desire for You.

Food In My Belly

Thank You for giving food in my belly today.

Peace

Thank You for unbelievable peace.

"And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."~Philippians 4:7

Free Food

Thank You for a company that will provide breakfast and lunch for their meetings.

Old Friends

Thank You for those old friends that have been around in my life for many years.  Even though I don't always talk or contact them, it's nice to hear that they have wondered about your life.

Heaven

Thank You for Heaven.  And thank You for those tiny glimpses into what it is going to be like.  You ARE awesome!

Crisp Fall Mornings

Thank You for the return of the crisp Fall mornings.  I love the cool weather and welcome it back this year.

Heritage

Thank You for a family that has a heritage in You.  Those roots are what keeps me grounded in You.

Today's Word

Thank You for today's Word.  Love it!

"Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise. Though I sit in darkness, the LORD will be my light." ~Micah 7:8

Autumn Sundays

Thank You for wonderful weather on a Autumn Sunday afternoon.

Neighborhood Restaurants

Thank You for those special restaurants that are close to the house and make me feel at home...like I am at home.

Your Word Today

Thank You for Your Word to me today.  As always, it is alive and speaking to me.  You say to me, "...choose this day, who I will serve, not for tomorrow, or next week, or even who I served yesterday.  You say this day, today.  Tomorrow, I will choose again.

"But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD." ~Joshua 24:15 (NIV)

Job

Thank You for a job.  So many people do not have, yet You have given one to me.

Dark Clouds

Thank You for the dark clouds.  They exist to bring storms and rain.  Without those, no growth can occur anywhere on the planet.

Pens

Thank You for pens.  What an incredible invention!

Magnets

Thank You for magnets.  You have placed them on this Earth to give me an example of something that can "draw" attraction.  This "pull" is not nearly as strong as Your pull within me.

Migraines

Thank You for migraines.  They show me that I can feel pain and pain means I'm alive.  They also show me that I need a Healer and I'm not alone.

Internet

Thank You for the Internet and the jobs it has created; including mine.

Your Hand

Thank You for Your hand when I fall.  It's wonderful to know that I don't have to stay down on the ground; that You will offer a hand to help me back up again.

Music

Thank You for music.  All kinds.  Especially the music that stirs my soul to draw closer to You.

Opportunity

Thank You for creating opportunity to share You with those who need to hear.  Thank You for opening my eyes and ears to see and hear those who are in need.  It still amazes me how much blessing comes from sharing you.  You rock!

Strong Examples

Thank You for fellow Christian men who are strong peers and refuse to let me just slip away from You.

Quiet Office

Thank You for a quiet office where I can concentrate and get some things accomplished.

Creative Church Signs

Thank You for neat church signs as I drive to lunch.

Sign read:

1 Cross
3 Nails
4 Given

In case you didn't know, 143 is the number of letters in I Love You.  (Oh, and I know...it's not in order, but still...)

Isn't creativity awesome?

Reconnect

Thank You for letting me reconnect with a step-daughter that I haven't been around in a long while.  You know my heart and can see that we both need each other.

Friends That Are Family

Thank You for those people in my life that are friends, but seem so much like family.

Paintings

Thank You for painting the forest with unimaginable colors!  Each time I thought I had seen the best, You out-did Yourself with the next set of trees.  You are an amazing artist, God.

Active Mind

Thank You for an active mind.

A Free Country

Thank You for a country where we are free to carry handguns.

Moon

Thank You for the bright moon.  Especially when it tries to hide behind foggy clouds.  Too cool.

Rain

Thank You for the rain.  Both physically and spiritually.  For without Your rain, growth cannot happen.  Without rain, I don't appreciate the sunshine.

New Days

Thank You for new days.  New mercies.  New attitudes. New erased past.  Thank You.

Emotions

Thank You for my emotions.  All of them.  Anger, sadness, joy, guilt, love, envy.  Thank You for being there when I experience all of them and it causes me to not "feel" You.

Infectious People

Thank You for those infectious people that view life on the positive and can be super fun to be around!

Your Love

Thank You that you love me even though I fail, I sin, and I am not worthy of Your love.

Thirst

Thank You for a thirst for You.  It seems that in my life I am pushed to my limits some days.  You always seems to bring me closer to You and fill my need to have more of You.

Family

Thank You for the family I have.  I know that in my life right now, I have a very unconventional family.  Nonetheless, thank You God for placing each one in my life.

The Why

I have started this blog for a very specific reason...to Thank God for everything that He has done and everything He has put into my life on a daily basis.

I realized sometime ago that I was really sick and tired of people complaining about everything while no one was grateful for what they already have, especially Christians. I just want a public place to give Him thanks...if just for one thing each day.  

I started this on my Twitter account, but I want to expand it to a blog now.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.


Dean