Thankfulness and Choosing JOY

We are in a time right now that is hard. We often feel discouraged. I find myself frequently feeling down and depressed. But then, I call upon the Lord for comfort. I have always found wisdom and comfort in my Mom's words of speaking the truth to me: "Amber, your JOY is complete in the LORD." I have heard many a good sermon on this issue. That I can CHOOSE to have JOY in my life regardless of my circumstances. So, I have had to remind myself a lot lately that I need to get out of my circumstances and choose to be joyful and thankful and remain positive. I have SO many blessings.

Caring daily for Evelyn has really helped me in this area. For she, no matter her circumstances, is always ready to smile back at me when I shoot her a smile. Who can't be joyful when they have that cute face to look at! And, I always try to remember to enjoy every day of caring for her - for I already realize how fast she grows and changes.

So, even though our home is still sitting on the market and Jason and I spend weeks apart, I am choosing to be thankful and hopeful. God is a God of details and He has worked out so many so far. I try to remind us and talk about that with Jason each day. I think about how thankful I am that Jason does get to come home on the weekends - that he is not off in war. There are women out there that deserve our prayers who have made this sacrifice. And, I have been blessed to be reading live about Shannon's journey to Africa. She shares stories about her trip about people she is meeting who are suffering. But, they cling to Jesus and have HOPE and JOY despite their very dire circumstances.

Please take some time and read about Shannon's journey and the other bloggers that are in Uganda as part of the Compassion International trip. We sponsor a Compassion child in Ethiopia. It is a wonderful organization and I encourage you all to contemplate if you are called to sponsor one, too.

My mom has been encouraging me to memorize more scripture. I have taken her up on the challenge and am slowly doing so. What a blessing! I also think that I am going to challenge myself to change my prayer life. To pray more for others - for the people of Uganda, our soldiers who are fighting for freedom, and for the current and future leadership of this country. I know God is happy when we put others before ourselves.

This is kind of a random post... I wanted to really encourage you to read Shannon's blogs. I know God is working through that expereince. And, thank you for your prayers. I do have peace knowing our God is good and is already taking care of all of our needs - every little detail. Sometimes, we just don't look closely enough to see them.

~Amber