A day filled with gratefulness
Published on August 15, 2005 By oleteach In Home & Family



Yesterday started with worship, prayer and fellowship. Then in the cool of our sunny, fresh Minnesota weather, my husband and I traveled to Harriet Island in the Mississippi River located on the edge of St. Paul to take part in the last day of Irish Fair Celebration.

We experienced a wide variety of Irish dance, song, bands, art, and culture. It was great to see very young dancers who had already mastered the intricate stomping steps of the Irish Jig. They were so cute in their elaborate customs. Of course, the more advanced groups were truly talented as they kicked up their heels and made the dance seem so effortless as they floated back and forth across the stages located in various large tents scattered throughout this picturesque island.

As we walked from one entertainment to another, I was so thankful for so many things. Throughout the day, it was impossible not to be aware of the many blessings we have here in our country. Every person we met was gracious, polite, concerned, and joyful. The whole atmosphere was to me, a wonderful reflection of what this world is meant to be and what it will be on the day when Christ returns in glory to unite heaven and earth.

Then the great questions rose in my mind: Why here? Why are we so blessed when people in Iraq can’t walk to work without fearing they will be killed on the way? Why can we choose to stop at any or all of the food booths and taste a wonderful variety of delicious foods when thousands in Africa are starving to death everyday? If I am so blessed, what is my place, my calling, my responsibility in this world to help spread this kind of peace and wonderment to others?

All the answers were not immediately evident to me. I did come away with a renewed spirit of thankfulness and a tremendous desire to be guided by the Spirit Who lives in me so that I will use every opportunity to help spread the spirit of peace to those around me. I was humbled and grateful for all the wonders of the gifts that God grants me everyday.

From a human standpoint, we can never hope to see the purpose and plan of God in everything. We humans with our fallen natures are the cause of the evils that befall others. If we have pledged to accept Christ in our lives, we can hope to make changes. He has taken out our hearts of stone and replaced them with a new heart. He begins a wonderful transformation in us. It takes a lifetime but we have the means to enjoy the journey while it is being done. When we acknowledge that we can do nothing without His saving power, He sends us The Helper, The Holy Spirit, to dwell in our hearts. If we think that we can make it on our own, then there is no need for a Helper.

Join the family of God and help spread peace and prosperity throughout the world. That is why we were created. That is the focus of our lives as children of a merciful God.



Comments
on Aug 15, 2005

Christ notwithstanding I think the question is quite valid. Fact is that it takes wealth to beget more wealth.

If one gatherer in prehistoric times had gathered two armfulls of flax plants and charitably gave one to his deadbeat idito neighbor who couldn't find food they would have both starved the next year when the crops that should have been grown by using that armful for seed starters didn't happen and there wasn't as much wild foliage to be harvested. What is the saying? God helps those who help temselves?

on Aug 15, 2005
The weather has been beautiful here this weekend.
on Aug 15, 2005
How very refreshing to stumble upon your blog today. Sounds like a wonderful Sunday and even if you didn't have the ability or resources to experience even a fraction of the blessings you did yesterday... you are rich beyond measure. Isn't it great to be a daughter of the King?

Thanks for bringing some much needed perspective to my day.
on Aug 15, 2005
greywar, I looked up the word "notwithstanding." It is used most often as an adverb. so I take it you were not trying to describe Christ. If you were using it as a preposition, it could mean "regardless of" or "in defiance of." So I take it you mean, in so many words, "Leaving Christ out of this...these are my thoughts." I could be wrong, of course.

The whole point of my article was to give thanks to my Creator who keeps my heart beating everyday, who has created so many beautiful things for me to enjoy each day and who always gives me the best of all things even when I don't recognize them as such. He loves me so much that He did not withhold His greatest treasure from me, namely His Son, Jesus Christ. So I never want to leave Christ out of any part of my life.

Your comments hold some truths too. We can go on and on, using our reason, or intelligence, our power to make this world better, but if our hearts are not changed, there will be no lasting effect from all of our "good works."
on Aug 15, 2005
xtine, how I wished that I could have had Katy along for the day. It was such a great family gathering in a truly beautiful setting. We even went for a 45" boat ride on the Mississippi. I think she would have loved it. It was a lot nicer than that cold, breezy trip we took on Lake Itasca with her. BRRRRRR that was cold. I met a family from Germany. The kids were on the boat ride and so I was able to talk with them for awhile. They spoke great English and they were enjoying everything there was to see.
on Aug 15, 2005
HC, thanks for the comments. I will be looking you up in the blog index to see what you are contributing.