Still Waters Wonder

"The Lord is my shepherd,
I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside still waters;
He restores my soul.

Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
I fear no evil;
for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff-
they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
my whole life long."
(Psalm 23)

Thank You, Lord, for leading me
beside these still waters.
I will not be afraid,
for You are with me
all the days of my life.

Thank You, God, for these wonders of Your love:
945. Beth's family
946. a sweet text from Andrew
947. Margaret pining for her lost childhood
948. a reminder to play the harp
949. a glimpse of the Dixons' beautiful, peaceful yard
950. inspiration
951. reading the last devotion
952. knowing that I will keep counting
953. going to sleep early
954. waking up from fitful dreams
955. "Prayer for Today"
956. Stephanie's art
957. holding on
958. talking to Temple
959. Victor's job and his ability
960. these early morning hours

With gratitude,
Sally

Up Again Wonder

When all seems barren
and hard
and gray
and lifeless,
God brings hope up again!

"You who have done great things,
O God, who is like you?
You who have made me see
many troubles and calamities
will revive me again;
from the depths of the earth
You will bring me up again.
You will increase my honor,
and comfort me once again."
(Psalm 71:19b-21)

What a wonder:
from the depths of the earth
You will bring me up again!

Thank You, God.
I'm counting on it!

Thank You, God, for these wonders of Your love:
929. Victor asking me to make Sweet Onion Chicken Pie
930. azaleas and camelias in red glass heart vases
931. a sunshiny day
932. an extra pie to take to Bobby and Betty
933. Heather. . .pretty in pink and so dear
934. celebrating good-as-gold Pam's birthday
935. welcoming newcomers
936. sweet puppy dogs waiting patiently
937. Doodles coming home
938. Sarah saying she'll stand in for me
939. JV being invited to be an escort
940. "no charge" for Andrew's car
941. a darling "Save the Date" card in the mail
942. more wonderful books in the mail
943. Victor and I looking forward to the Place of Prayer
944. seeing Willis in the parking lot

With gratitude,
Sally

Wondrous Things

"Blessed be the Lord,
the God of Israel,
who alone does wondrous things.
Blessed be His glorious name forever;
May His glory fill the whole earth.
Amen and Amen."
(Psalm 72:18-19)

Daffodil emerging amidst dead leaves. . .
wondrous things!

Thank You, God, for these wonders of Your love:
913. throwing a book in the trash
914. realizing the importance of speaking the truth in love
915. Andrew
916. John Victor
917. Margaret
918. Benjamin
919. Sarah
920. Joseph
921. Victor
922. the Mallorys
923. Sarah knitting
924. Temple knitting
925. the sound of the dishwasher
926. a fresh start
927. a day to prepare
928. looking forward to Spring

With gratitude,
Sally

Resting Wonder

"Be still and know that I am God."
(Psalm 46:10)

Be still.
Cease striving.
Rest in Me.
Trust Me.

Thank You, good God, for these wonders of Your love:
897. the sound of the rain
898. Victor calling
899. time to be still and know God
900. time at home to be a homemaker
901. Dante's funny meow
902. texting
903. purple and green sticky notes
904. enough sleep
905. my peacock feather
906. sons and daughters
907. alleluia! the chimes on the hour
908. pine sol
909. folding towels
910. a smooth, blue stone
911. "Sally, hope in God!"
912. a bag of brittle, brown pieces of a leaf

With gratitude,
Sally

The Wonder of the Way of the Cross

When I was at the monastery
I walked and prayed
the way of the cross.

One station at a time,
I stopped at each cross
and imagined Jesus
and prayed.

Jesus journeyed
the way of the cross.

I wonder, will I go with Him?

Will you?

Dear God, please give us strength for this journey.

Thank You, Lord, for these wonders of Your love:
881. Mema feeling alright after falling
882. new growth coming after all this rain
883. a box of books in the mail
884. making JV's first payment to UGA
885. the mechanic finding nothing wrong with Andrew's car
886. a new start on my Lenten journey
887. having already ordered the book Jose was reading
888. so many Bible studies to look forward to
889. a quiet, rainy day at home
890. washing dishes and washing clothes
891. my mechanical helpers
892. waking up hopeful
893. expressing thanks
894. Julie's powerful story shared
895. our down-to-earth district superintendent, Denise
896. old friends and new friends and grace!

With gratitude,
Sally

The Wonder of Unfailing Love

"Though the mountains be shaken
and the hills be removed,
yet my unfailing love for you
will not be shaken
nor my covenant of peace
be removed,
says the Lord,
who has compassion on you."
(Isaiah 54:10)

Thank You, Lord, for these wonders of Your love:
865. Margaret playing "Holy, Holy, Holy" on violin with choir
866. JV in Harvey's shirt
867. Ben asking about Sunday morning cinnamon rolls
868. putting everything in crock pot and turning it on
869. Joyce and James sitting right in front of me in church
870. Freddy and family beside me
871. Jose's sermon speaking straight to my heart
872. Sunday dinner around Mama's table
873. a brief, but good, Sunday afternoon nap
874. Margaret warning me to slow down just in time
875. Victor helping me with snack supper
876. young people who express thanks
877. Ashley and Sean and James and Billy and William and Ethan and Cornchip
878. remembering again my great relief
879. hearing "Let go of the fear of rejection."
880. crying out to Jesus

With gratitude,
Sally

The Freedom of Wonder

From One Thousand Gifts Devotional:
Reflections On Finding Everyday Graces. . .
"Daily discipline is the door
to full freedom
and the discipline
to count to one thousand
gave way to
the freedom of wonder
and I can't imagine
not staying awake
to God in the moment,
the joy in the now."

As I look at this picture
of my youngest, Ben,
and me
which was taken
less than a year ago,
I realize how much and how fast
he has grown and changed;
and I realize how
the joy really is in the now
and, if we don't stay awake
to God in the moment,
we miss it.

O God, please help us
to develop
the daily discipline
to keep counting
the wonders of Your love
to one thousand
and on to infinity
because
in the counting
there is freedom
there is wonder
there is joy
there is love!

Thank You, Loving God, for these wonders of Your love:
840. a new grandmother's love
841. merciful delivery through dangers
842. being energized through Flow
843. grocery shopping
844. just a light rain
845. enough room to transport all those bags
846. cheese and crackers and a witness
847. lighting a lunchtime candle
848. starting a pot of chili on a wet, cold February day
849. Benjamin getting to play with the varsity
850. "a pretty goal!, who was it?". . . "JV!"
851. Margaret's new cleats matching Taylor's
852. Victor having supper with Sarah and Ross as traffic eases
853. Milly and Margaret feeling better
854. a little time in the parlor with Margaret
855. best "Open Mic Night" yet

With gratitude,
Sally