One thousand gifts

I am back on the farm, bare feet planted deep, toes in the soil. This place sings its own song and I gather eggs with my sister in the mornings and we breathe deep, fresh air and our lungs expand, filling with joy. I love Summer time, these months overflowing with fresh flowers and ripe tomatoes and glowing faces. It is all a gift.

I read a book last year called One Thousand Gifts.  It was written by a stay at home mom of 6 and it is about her journey to experiencing God’s deep love. If I could give you one book, this would be the one. Her testimony forever changed the way I experience God’s love. She counted 1000 gifts from God and so I began to count with her. I am still counting today.

We are adventure hunters. We are always searching for beauty. Isn’t this the reason for so much heart ache? The search for beauty gone wrong? As the sons and daughters of God, we were created for a beauty experience. Our hearts beat for the heart felt life. The beautiful life. It is here and now.

I used to think that the closest experiences with God were on the edge of the ocean or the top of a mountain. I remember when Chris and I went to the Alps. We stood on the great mountain in between Switzerland and Austria and I soaked up the view, breathtaking. I memorized the moment. The glorious splendor and beauty of the wild flowers blooming beneath the sun and the snow capped peaks, reaching toward heaven. We equate this beauty and the glorious moments with God, our hearts forever searching.

But glory, I have discovered, does not live on the edge of the ocean or the Swiss Alps. It lives within us because God lives within us. It lives in this moment, surrounding us. 1000 gifts is about counting the gifts of today and seeing God in every moment. If every thing and every moment is a gift and He is always giving, then isn’t my whole life a deep romance? A love letter from the King of it all? Writing down the gifts has helped me to see the grace. And so I write and I count these blessings and I rejoice in today. I break through the soul fog and I see Him in everything.

It is in Him that we live and move and have our being. -Acts 17:28

Oh, the rich joy that can be found in today! Our culture tells us that we must always have more. That maybe happiness is available if we would just change ourselves. Our skin, our weight, our soul. Beauty starved and joy stolen, we are frail bones, rattling, searching for joy. Our eyes are clouded and we are blinded to the beauty all around us. It is a deep and soul destroying lie that we so often choose to believe. But it is not the truth. The truth is that we are the beauty of God. We are literally His dwelling place, a beautiful temple of the most high God. And in each moment, He is calling out to us. The whole earth is filled with His glory. I am collecting the whispers of God, these moments that speak to my soul. I am recording this romance with ink on paper. His gifts awaken my soul. I am alive in Him and each day I am learning the truth about myself. His truth.

Join me on this journey. Buy a journal, lay it open on your counter and count. Write down 1000 things that you are thankful for. 1000 gifts. Leave the journal open and go to it when you experience joy, recording the reason. Ink on paper, your soul will become alive. We come alive when we are romanced. Love beckons us to open up. Like a flower opens her petals to the first touch of the sun, we open ourselves to the whispers of love. A woman romanced is a magical thing. Romance in the way that God intended it to be will awaken the soul. It will reach into the deepest parts of the heart and the deepest wounds of the past, healing and transforming. When she is romanced, a woman dwells in the safety of love. She feels free to open up and to share her life, realizing that she has something beautiful and unique to offer the world.

God designed love to be beautiful and freeing. Allow His love to romance you through this journey. Realize that counting gifts opens your heart to His love in an intimate and incredible way. And that each moment of joy and each delight of your heart is a gift from the One who created you.

Count with me. Allow your heart to come alive, your soul to be pursued by the God of the universe. Write down the ways He loves you and remove the fog from your eyes. He is everywhere. His love surrounds us, drawing our hearts to His.

1000 gifts; Whispers from God.

  1. Gathering fresh eggs with my sister
  2. Making homemade bread with my Grandma. Her smile.
  3. Plants growing roots in mason jars
  4. Fresh tomatoes from the garden
  5. Late nights. Long talks with best friends.
  6. Oak trees and the way the air feels just before the rain.
  7. Guitar strings. Worship team practice with good friends.
  8. Hands held, prayers offered up
  9. My daddy and Chris at the kitchen table, laughing.
10. The sun dancing on the water at the pond.

All of these are ways that God pours out His love upon me. Counting the gifts helps me to recognize His hand in each moment. His love for us is so personal, so beautiful. I encourage you to count with me. Open your heart to His love in a new way.