1,000 gifts

During my new nightly ritual, reading until I fall asleep, I started a book titled One Thousand Gifts.  In search of something good and easy to read, I pulled it from the shelf and began reading.  My sister could have never known how this book would influence me.

Ann Voscamp, the author, creates a list of daily gifts over the course of a year.  Her list encourages her to grow a heart of thankfulness and gratitude.  Throughout the book, Ann's desires to know what eucharisteo truly means and she desires to live a life displaying eucharisteo.  The book is filled with reflections of how through the Cross of Christ, she has so much to be thankful for.  Ann's list it's the beauty of gratitude. She promotes a life of eucharisteo.

May we live a life of eucharisteo and a life full of thankfulness and gratitude!
Blessings,
Carolyn

Luke 22:19 "And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me."

New Year's Resolutions

If I resolved to days without failure in the New Year, it won't last very long....I have failed lots this year. Remember The 5:30 am Club??? Yep, that didn't last for very long.  Less than 2 weeks later it stopped.  What about days with a list like this... or days with lizards.  What a year!!! There have been plenty of days with failure yet alongside days of failure there was an abundance of grace.

I think Paul David Tripp has the right idea in his post Ringing in the New Year, none of us completely resolve to transform our lives in one day but the daily tiny changes are the ones that matter most, the changes that transform us the most.  He suggests that it is the 10,000 little moments that change us. Ten thousand little moments of personal insight and conviction, humble submission, foolishness exposed and wisdom gained, sin confessed and sin forsaken, courageous faith, obedience, and "forsaking the kingdom of self and running towards the kingdom of God."

To encourage these 10,000 moments, I want to read the following books this New Year.

1. Love to Eat Hate to Eat by Elyse Fitzpatrick
2.  Idols of the Heart by Elyse Fitzpatrick
3. Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands by Paul David Tripp
4. Broken Down House by Paul David Tripp

So here is to "10,000 moments where we abandon worship of the creation and give ourselves to worship of the Creator" this year!
Blessings,
Carolyn