Day 16: Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving!

As hard as these past 2 weeks have been, I am truly blessed. And God is teaching me to be thankful- sometimes by throwing it in my face over and over again. I have been told to read the book One Thousand Gifts for a few months now and haven't done it yet. Then I went on a retreat where we focused on the book and the fact that Eucharisto is made up of joy, grace, and thanksgiving. It was all about learning to give thanks in all circumstances. Receiving grace is a large piece of truly being thankful and experiencing Eucharisto. And then at church on Sunday, Ben preached about being thankful. Clearly sometimes God has to continue to throw things at me multiple times before I get it. Third times a charm and I am learning to give thanks continually.

So here goes the list of things for which I'm thankful (This is a real list. Not like 2 years ago at Thanksgiving dinner when we went around the table I said I was thankful for text messages):

I am so thankful for my family. Even through all our craziness, I wouldn't trade them for anything in the world!

I am so thankful for my sweet New Rules girls. For Katie, Lacey, Paige, Faith, Tracy, Lauren, Tabria, Roz, Angela, Lindsay, Egypt, Savannah. You girls were such an answer to prayers! And it so nice to not feel totally alone in all this.  For Danielle and Jamie and Sara who are battling singleness with me! And it is a battle- every single day.

I am so thankful for my DTR group. You guys are way better than a steak! :) For Becky and her putting up with all of us and pouring into us (even when we are a sinking ship) For Rosie and her sense of humor and wit. For Holly and her compassion. For Suzanne and her persistence and passion. She does more in 10 minutes than I do all day! For Christy and her genuine desire to follow the Lord. For Ale and her sweet spirit. For Amy and her ability to keep us on our toes.

I am so thankful for sweet friendships like Jamie and Eryka and the time we spent together yesterday. For the laughter and jokes, but also for the conversation and transparency. God has placed these women in my life at exactly the right moment!

I am so thankful for my growth group and the time we have spent together. I am excited to see what the Lord has in store for us in the next few years!

I am so thankful for friendships, old and new. For Sara and her constant encouragement and prayer- even when I'm a horrible friend. For Sally and her honesty and new perspective that she gives me. For Megan and her ability to know the worst about me and still not judge me.

I know there are people I left out and things that I am truly blessed to have. I am thankful for all the women on the Sardis retreat and getting to know their hearts. I am thankful for the people that have encouraged me through hurt and rejoiced with me through good times. I am thankful for you!