Today I’m thankful for…

Today I’m thankful for fall. That’s an interesting statement considering the fact that I don’t especially like winter, and fall is the signal that the cold months are coming. But I’ve decided not to allow the threat of winter to rob me of the joy of autumn.

It’s been a fine, albeit busy, summer with lots of heat, a fair amount of rain, and happy flowers, trees, crops and grass. We’re still mowing our lawn in the latter half of September, which is very unusual. Everything is still green except the elms, which are staring to turn, and the green ash trees, which are a gorgeous, deep yellow. Since we haven’t experienced a killing frost yet, most of the leaves are still clinging to their branches.

My dear mother, who is an alert 92 ½ years of age (how very thankful I am for her), encourages me to embrace every phase of life, and I think that should be true for the seasons as well. I will let the delicious autumn colors, clean air, lack of bugs and mellow weather surround and bless me. Then I will welcome winter as a break from yard work, from the busyness of the summer, and embrace it’s cold from the confines of my warm home. A time of relative peace and rest.

Which leads me to the fact that I am extremely thankful for my home,

 

 

for the warmth I experience there, both physically and emotionally,

for the security we are blessed with in our country (Let’s pray for our leaders, especially as we head toward the election.),

for family and friends that make my life so rich,

for my church family and pastors that continually bless, support and teach me the truth of the Word of God (Did I mention our small group? What a joy to be part of that collection of friends),

for work and inspiration and connections and situations that take me outside my comfortable existence from time to time.

But most of all, I’m thankful to God that He’s given me the opportunity to live and love through Him because of what Jesus Christ has done for me by willingly taking the burden of sin and replacing it with forgiveness and unimaginable freedom and peace.

A friend on Facebook recently quoted: “If you have a pulse, you have a purpose.” I’m thankful to say that the One who keeps my heart beating also oversees and guides my purpose in this life.

Happy Fall! Be thankful every day, not just on that long weekend in October.

Note: I’m also thankful for the terrific photo site called www.morguefile.com, where I find so many of these pictures. “You are allowed to copy, distribute, transmit the work and to adapt the work. Attribution is not required. You are prohibited from using this work in a stand alone manner.”