Counter of Gifts

I've seen glimpses of it. That beautiful, sometimes invisible thread woven into the seams of everyday life; the way God's goodness embroiders itself upon every moment. Sure, I've stopped to marvel at His craftsmanship on occasion; sometimes His goodness is hard to ignore. But if I'm honest with myself, I miss the everyday evidence of God's grace far too often.

It's easy to give thanks for the big moments, isn't it? Like hearing the words "you're hired." Or walking down the aisle. Or holding a healthy baby in your arms for the first time. These moments are beautiful and life-changing - gifts to be treasured. But they are also rare.

Most of life's tapestry is adorned with moments that seem far more ordinary.

Is any moment really ordinary, though? Consider the way a beautiful sunrise can make you catch your breath. Or the way the earthy smell of coffee awakens your senses though your body longs to sleep. Or the way you sit down with loved ones for supper, carving out a small space of time together. These things happen every day, and most of the time we pay no attention to their passing. Yet these things - yes, a sunrise, coffee, and supper - are little gifts liberally bestowed upon us by a gracious God.

Ann Voskamp's book One Thousand Gifts has challenged me to find the thread of God's goodness woven into daily life. And I can feel a change. In the way I spend more time in prayers of thanksgiving. In the way I feel grateful for things I used to ignore. I'm becoming a seeker of grace, a counter of gifts.

Here's a peek at some of the gifts growing around us lately. New life is pushing through the soil that was covered in snow just a few short weeks ago. Every spring strikes me as a miracle!

Perspective

We had high hopes for the weekend. We really did.

After all, it was Mother's Day. And our seven-year anniversary. And Will and I had Monday off, giving us a three-day break. Yes, the stars were aligned, the odds were in our favor, every sign pointed to a wonderful weekend.

Except ... nothing went as planned.

Instead of celebrating seven years of wedded bliss? We bickered. Instead of being a mother who deserved a holiday in her honor? I was exhausted and irritable. Instead of creating memorable moments together? We couldn't agree on an activity, so we mostly did our own thing. 

Pretty soon I found myself wishing that this much-anticipated weekend would just hurry up and end. 

And then ... yesterday. I took out my camera and stumbled across pictures I took last weekend. Do you want to know what I saw? Take a look ...

You know what I see in these pictures? A peaceful view. A loving family. Beautiful flowers. A handwritten note. And my own little Huckleberry Finn.

You know what I don't see in these pictures? Arguments. Stubbornness. Exhaustion.

My camera captured what I couldn't see.

The weekend was filled with little moments that should have stopped me in my tracks, should have made me marvel at God's goodness. But I missed them. I couldn't see the beautiful things that were unfolding around me because my focus was on how things weren't going my way. 

You know what I think? I think that's life. I think that sometimes life doesn't go the way we planned, sometimes the day-to-day falls short of our expectations. But you know what else I think? I think that in the midst of the mess, God is trying to get our attention. He fills our days - even the bad ones - with good things. We just need to open our eyes.