Thankful

There has been such an overflow of bad news lately... not in my own life, but in the lives of others around me. One story was of a 13 year old girl (many of you have heard this one the news) who lost her battle with cancer, and her parents lost their baby girl. Another woman who so desperately wanted to be a mother, finally got pregnant only to deliver prematurely and go into a coma before even meeting her precious baby boy. Another was of a friend who just learned she has a condition that will leave her deaf with time, and I know another who will lose his sight. I have a couple friends who are desperately trying to have children and have been patiently waiting years for God to bless them with the ability to do so. I attended a sexual abuse training on Tuesday that was incredibly eye opening to the hurt and suffering so many youth are enduring behind closed doors because of the lack of protection their parents are failing to provide. Children are being kidnapped and sold into sex trade every day, cancer is rearing its ugly head all over the world, starvation and poverty consume millions of people every year... it is beyond heart breaking. All of it makes my "first world" struggles so insignificant in comparison. We were discussing how we are going to afford a car payment and how to lower the mortgage, while so many are losing loved ones, dying for lack of food and medical care, and struggling with life altering diseases and ailments.

I was sitting here reading my book and Hayden walks into the room wearing one of my T-shirts, a pair of sunglasses, and my high heels. (The high heels were removed before this picture ;) ) I was overwhelmed with gratitude to my God that I have a healthy, beautiful baby girl, one that I can SEE every day and watch grow, play, and dress up in her wild outfits.


 That I have four beautiful healthy children whose laughter, screaming, and sweet (and many times annoying :) ) voices fill my perfectly healthy ears every day. That I have arms to hug, hold and carry them, legs to walk and run with them, health to care for them and their Daddy. I was blessed to carry each of them for 9 months, none premature, no problems or concerns. I was blessed to give birth to each of them, to hear them cry for the first time, to hold them and smell that sweet newborn scent. We have always been provided for, never having to watch our children suffer from being too cold, too hot, or too hungry. Though they drive me absolutely CRAZY most days and I tend to want to run in the opposite direction, I am blessed to be their mother, to be home with them, to care for them and watch them grow into the beautiful people God is creating them to be. This may not always be the case... in fact I am sure we will face many difficulties, tragedies, and heartaches over the years... but for now, may I never take for granted the MANY ways God has blessed our family. The greatest of which is that we were not born in a place where Christ's name is unknown, but in a country where we are not only free to believe what we want, but that is filled in abundance with books, churches, and people who saturate us in His truth and love. We were born into families that taught us His truth, and by the grace and mercy of our amazing Lord, our hearts were opened to His gift of salvation and we are eternally secure in His arms. If we were given nothing more than that, it would be more than enough. But God has chosen to bless us in more ways than we could count, and I pray we may never forget to give Him the glory and praise He deserves for allowing us to experience these incredible gifts. Even as my daughter just spilled grapes all over the floor by my feet and is rubbing sunscreen all over Gabriel's head, while my son is screaming at me from across the kitchen to get him more waffles... deep within my frustrations is a full heart of gratitude and thankfulness that I am able to enjoy these moments with my sweet family.