Are you Thankful for your Gift?

My son couldn’t have been more than 5 years old when he learned a valuable lesson about thankfulness. It was during one of our visits to my in-laws that my children ran to the ‘surprise drawer’ my mother-in-law had created for them to check. My children anticipated their gift with each trip to their grandparent’s home. On this particular day all three of my children ran to the drawer and excitedly opened it to retrieve their ‘surprise’. It was at this moment that the excitement turned to embarrassment for me as my middle child grabbed his gift. Imagine his face turning from pure delight to sheer disappointment in less than two seconds…yes, it looked liked something from a movie! He turned to his grandmother and with a sound of dismay stated, “I already have this.” It was one of those times in life that I wished I had a pause-life button that I could hit and stop something as I sensed it was coming. No such luck for me or my son on this day! Needless to say, he was quickly exited from the room as we had a crash course on being ‘thankful for whatever you have been given’ in the privacy of the bathroom. That same son is now 19 years old and in college, yet often a reference is made to this incident by his grandparents when an opportunity arises to complain. Someone in the family will mockingly say, “I am thankful for whatever I get” in a tone that is a reminder of his little voice echoing those words. It became something he said with each gift he received from that day on.

I can’t help but think how I so often do this to my Heavenly Father with one of the most precious gifts He has given me—the gift of time. The way I use the gift of time could be an indicator about how I feel about it.
Do I waste time on things such as TV, internet, Facebook, etc?
Do I use it for what I want instead of what He would want? Serving Him by serving others.
Do I use it on things that have no eternal value over and over again? Building my kingdom instead of His kingdom.
Do my actions, in essence, say that I already have plenty of time and I can do what I want and when I want?
The way I use the time allotted to me is an indicator about what I think of His gift. If I am truly His child, His servant, and His creation then I will realize that my time is not mine at all, but rather His. I am to be a good steward of the time He has given me. His Word says, “So, teach us to number our days, that we may present to You a heart of wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12) Time…only God controls how much we get of it. Are we making choices that reflect a heart that is truly “thankful for whatever we get”?
In His Love,
Lori

Need Peace?

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6, 7

Friends,
There are so many things that we can become anxious about simply because we live in a world that is full of calamity. How do we live above these feelings of anxiousness? How do we attain to this peaceful way of life? Can we really experience a true peace in the midst of a crisis, in the midst of terrible hurt and pain, and during disappointing circumstances? YES, YES and YES again! We truly can. There is a secret to living this life of peace. Actually, its not a secret at all since it is stated clearly in the verse above. God’s Word tells us to take everything to Him in prayer with a thankful heart. For me, this has taken years of prayer and discipline to train myself to run to the Lord first when I become anxious, overwhelmed, hurt, or disappointed. But, as with any exercise the results are worth it. In recent months I have experienced one difficult situation after another. Each situation resulted in hurt, disappointment, and what could have been anxious feelings. However, through the power of the Holy Spirit, the Lord has reminded me of this verse and my responsibility to respond appropriately in circumstances or to people. How in practical terms does it work? Let me share with you how I put the Truth of God’s Word to work in my life and release the power of God in my life. When I experience a situation such as those described above:
· I make a conscious choice to pray either silently (while it is occurring) or aloud (immediately afterwards) for God to be in the midst of my response.
· As soon as possible I focus on prayer while obeying His Truth—praying to Him about the situation and thanking Him for it; knowing that He would not allow it in my life unless it could conform me to the image of His Son (Romans 8:28, 29).
· I then ask that His will is made known to me in my response to the situation. I ask Him to comfort me in my feelings and for Him to grant godly wisdom to me as I walk through the situation (James 3:17).

Does the formula above prevent pain in my life? No, not at all nor does it make the situation disappear. However, I can say that in the midst of the situation I do experience His peace. Situations that could have caused me to crumble, become disillusioned with other believers, and challenge my faith have instead caused me to trust Him more, rely on His power and not my own, and grown me even nearer to my Heavenly Father. Praying and thanking Him in the midst of a trial does keep me from responding in my own strength, wisdom, and according to what ‘feels good to me’ at the moment. God’s Word is Truth. These are not words on a page to read and leave there. We are to live by them, walk according to them, and allow them to invade our very being by changing the way we live. God’s peace is available to you today—right now. Let it overwhelm and surround you so that you will experience the ‘peace that surpasses all comprehension’.
In His Love,
Lori

Hello Friends,
This concept of blogging and my thoughts about whether I should or shouldn’t is a reminder to me of some remarks that I have heard in the last few weeks. My daughter looked at my feet recently and said, “Your feet are wrinkly!” I wished I could say that I had been swimming or just come out of the tub, but I had not. Last night my son was explaining the content of one of his college courses and stated, “I’m sure it wasn’t even around when you were here in college—it is all about computers.” Two statements such as this can really make one feel old. The idea of blogging makes me feel old just because it is foreign to me. But, I am giving it a try. You could say I am doing it so my children think I am ‘with it’. Or it could be that for some time I have felt the Lord’s prompting for this to be a good way for me to stay connected to the women that are a part of this ministry. I believe it is the latter, although the other two remarks moved me quicker in this direction!

So, I would love to hear your thoughts. Do you like to read blogs? Could we stay connected this way? What are your thoughts on this subject? I would love for this to be a way for us to connect and for you to hear how God is working in this ministry and my life. If I understand correctly then I will get to hear how He is working in yours as well. So, let’s try something new for this ministry and see how God wants to use it. I am anticipating great things!

In His Love,
Lori Merrill

Called to be a Keeper

The Keepers Ministry is SO EXCITED to announce to you the release of the newest version of the Keepers Bible Study, everything you need for Keepers in one bound book. Order online by going to our website at www.calledtobeakeeper.com.