With a Thankful Heart...

     I would be remiss if I did not begin this post with a prayer of thankfulness to my Lord. Father, Lord, and Omnipotent God; you have loved me even when I have neglected to acknowledge your presence. I am guilty, in so many ways, of treating you impersonally and calling you my God when I don't even acknowledge your existence. I am thankful that your love is not contingent upon my thoughts, philosophies, and attentiveness to you. Rather, you sent your son to die for me even when you knew I would be neglectful, wicked, selfish, and impatient. I am undeserving of all that you have given me, but I take every day, every breath, as a sign that you still have plans to use me in these evil days. I can never quite articulate just how grateful I am, but you know my heart. I ask that you instill in me a heart of gratefulness on days that it is not easy to be thankful, and a heart of humility on days that it is. I thank you for the temptations you place in my life to help me remember that I must lean on you for true strength and guidance, and to remind me that there is blessing and growth just beyond that temptation. Lord, I do not write this prayer as a sign of piety, but one of humility because you called me to be faithful, and to preach your Gospel; my limited ability is nothing compared to the movement of your spirit. Truly, let it be!

     These days, as I approach what I would consider to be an "age of ripeness," I am finding myself much more introspective and thoughtful of all the things for which I have to be grateful. I must give a discourse of gratitude to my parents, who found it of utmost importance to grow me in a Christian home and to raise me with a moral aptitude. Also, I have to thank you Mom for taking the time to answer my questions, on that Wednesday in 1992, when I felt the spirit moving me to make a decision for Christ, and to have Him indwell my heart. Ironically enough mom, you were also there when I was struggling with my call to the ministry, and helped me pray through this time, cried with me, and gave me encouragement when I was discourage, I love you. To my dad, I must say that I am grateful to you for teaching me to be a man, maybe not explicitly because words can be flimsy, but you taught me a lot by example, by treating Mom with loving respect, and by being the leader that Greg and I needed. You are the strongest man I have ever known and, though I fail to tell you enough, I love you.

   To my brother, we have not always gotten along (that's just what being a brother is about) but as we have both grown, I have found a friend and mentor in you that I couldn't find anywhere else, because you can see through my BS. I have learned a lot about patience, leadership, and wisdom from you. You've selflessly given of yourself on a number of occasions, and I have failed to tell you how grateful I am to you. Thanks for being a good big brother, and teaching me early about Star Wars and the importance of technology. I love you.

     To my sister-in-law Sarah, you are a wonderful human being! I am grateful for how much you love my brother, and I am grateful for your unquenchable energetic disposition. You have taught me a lot about hard work, and organization (mostly because I am lacking in both of those areas). You have played an integral role in making Elisabeth feel welcomed and comfortable in our family, and I love you for that.

     Elisabeth, I don't have words to truly explain my thankfulness for you. God blessed me with a helpmate in you that I could never have imagined. Already, in the near 6 months that we have been married you have helped me to break down some barriers of pretension that I have held for many years. You have taught me how to love deeper, how to appreciate the oddities of life, and have helped me to appreciate food like never before (I'm never giving up Oreos BTW). You are the sweetest person I know, and deserve to be treated with the utmost delicacy, love and respect; it is likely that I will fail in these areas. But, I promise to you that I will do everything in my power to give you these things, and will rely on God to teach me the rest. I am thankful that you are smarter than me, and continue to stretch my mind, get me out of my own little world, and help me to "stop and smell the roses." You remind me of my grandmother Breckley in certain aspects of your character. I love you with my whole being and am thankful that you are in fact "my favorite."

With a day like today, I have to say thank you to so many people and have so little time to do so. If you are reading this, then know that I am thankful for you more than I could possible express. Here are a few of the people I have to be thankful for, because you have shaped me and my life in a very special form and fashion: Sonny, Kari, Caitlyn, Camryn, Aunt Esther, Uncle John, Johnny, Trisha, Jim (and all those girls), Nic, Cathy, Tony, Kelly, Scott (and your amazing girls), Ken, Amanda, Uncle Steve, Aunt Terry, Dave, Karen, (and your awesome boys), Josh, Oscar, Florence, Craig, Phyllis, Eric, Bill, Dondra, Dave, Kate, Tina, Mike, Tommy, Betty, Margie, Marv, Stacey, Uncle Al, Aunt Peggy, Tony, Rhonda, Jason, and especially my Granfather Harry and Grandmother Doris (you are missed).

I have so much to be thankful for, and can't remember the last time I deserved any of God's goodness. Think. Thank. Love.