Thankful Tuesday

Thanksgiving is two days away and it seems like the world is forgetting that fact. Christmas decorations went up right after Halloween and some radio stations are already playing Christmas music (I think that should be illegal to do before Thanksgiving). I know retailers are all into making the most of the shopping days before Christmas, but what about the part where we remember to give thanks?

In 1 Thessalonians, Paul tells us to "give thanks in all circumstances." Well, let me show you some circumstances where we've been giving thanks.


Last Friday, our youth group, Salt 'N' Light (more affectionately known as SNL), had our annual Thanksgiving Potluck. I'm so grateful for all the parents who cooked and prepared food for us!! Their support of us in youth ministry is priceless. 

I'm also thankful for our student leadership team that faithfully attends Sunday afternoon meetings and volunteers their time and energy to serve others. Here's a picture of JLowe (that's his nickname) and Boyi serving drinks during the dinner.

I'm thankful for the teens that came & who attend our youth group. Without them, this ministry would be nothing!

During our program, we had a time of worship. We have to remember who the Giver is! Then we had an open mic time of sharing. Another thing I'm grateful for is the youth and parents who got up to share about God's goodness and provision in their lives.

I'm also very, VERY thankful for my fellow youth counselors: Pearson, Gerald, & Tiffany. We're a great team and I'm blessed by their wisdom, insight, and friendship. We don't actually have a picture of just the four of us, so sometime we'll have to take one!

Most of all, all the glory and praise goes to God for making any of this possible. He is the Giver of all good things and my life would be a complete mess without Him.

I'll post more things I'm thankful for during this Thanksgiving week. :)

December is the Month for Giving

Obviously I haven't done a very good job of keeping this blog up so far! I plan on fixing that, but it's just been really busy lately. This post is going to be short.

December is just around the corner, and it's one of my favorite months. I love walking around downtown Chicago and seeing all the lights and decorations around the city. There are so many good memories associated with this time of year. My sister, Melissa, and I used to play a game where we would count how many houses we passed that had Christmas lights to see who could count the most. I love remembering how God became one of us through Jesus Christ, His Son. I love giving special gifts to people and seeing their responses.

But December is also my birth month! I don't usually go asking people to give me gifts, but since "gifts" is one of my love languages & since I know some people are wondering what to get me, I'm doing this for you. I don't expect people to give me everything on this list and I don't NEED any of it. The thing I love most is quality time with family & friends. :)

So, here's my Amazon wish list. I'd like a bike for my triathlon too, but they don't sell good bikes on Amazon. And that can wait for another day.