Gratefulness

Went from a peaceful morning this morning to a tremendously stressful afternoon. Decided that I needed to get away from work for a short while before I fell apart, and decided too that instead of doing some much-needed Christmas shopping, I needed to write and reflect. In the midst of mountains of stress, extreme exhaustion, and a little pinch of heartache, the Lord has called to mind over and over the many blessings that He's put in place. So I'm using this little mini break from the chaos to list out these things, mostly for my own benefit, but hopefully it'll be of some encouragement to someone else as well. Here's what I've got:

Some things to be tremendously thankful for:

A Savior who has come and is coming: in this season, it’s sweet to think of the desperate need our world was in for a Savior 2000 years ago, and God’s goodness in sending one! And sweet to joyfully await the day He will return! And to know that this Jesus we sing about is MY redeemer!

Friends who get it – not just friends who know the right thing to say or might share hobbies with me, but friends who GET me, who know my quirks and love me anyway. Friends who’ve stood the test of time, people with whom the “remember whens” just keep on coming

A loving and stable family – I realize more and more all the time how very rare this is! I’ve never had to question my family’s love for each other or for me, I’ve always been able to count on encouragement and support, and patience when I’m snotty or selfish. Dinner dates with my parents and little getaway trips to my sister’s are becoming some of my favorite activities of late!

Having people w/disabilities in my life. People say all the time that it “takes a special type of person” to work with this population. But I really think I’m the lucky one! I’m thankful for every ounce of trust I’ve earned from any client over the years, for all the mini triumphs I get to witness, for all the struggles worked through, for the sweet friendships formed.

Working with amazing people who share my passion. I can’t even begin to describe how incredible my “operations” team is at work. The other supervisors and our managers are some of the most dedicated and capable people I know. I never feel alone in my passion for the people we care for – sometimes I feel like I have to run to keep up!

Worshiping with people who mean it. There’s something pretty incredible about playing Christmas songs on keyboard with the church band and really worshipping through it. And it’s so sweet to know the lives of the redeemed sinners all around me and know that they mean the words that they sing.

And so much more! What an ocean of blessings I swim in!