Tag:

thank you

Thank you!

by TerryLema

I want to take this first day of the new year to say, “Thank You!” to all who have read and maybe shared these daily devotions. I so appreciate you!

I started keeping a daily journal in the 1980’s. I did that for many years and then I realized that many people were going through some of the same hurts, trials, and struggles about which I often journaled. I also realized that some might benefit from what God often brought to me from the Scriptures.

So, I changed from a personal journal to a shared daily devotion. Each day now I send the devotion via email to some, publish on https://TerrysDevotions.com and post on Facebook.

It is a ministry of love for me. And I receive so much love in return when someone comments that the devotion touched their hearts or that it ministered to something they were going through at the time.

Paul wrote to the Roman believers, “For I want very much to see you, so I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you, that is, to be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.” [1:11 HCSB]

I want you to know how much your faith has encouraged mine. I pray that in the year ahead, my faith will find opportunity to also encourage yours.

God Bless!

0 comment
FacebookEmail

“Thank you for … “

by TerryLema

A couple days ago (October 31), I wrote about how God invites us alongside Him to work for His will and His purpose. He does it all, calls us, empowers us, gives us His vision, and then when we accept His invitation to work through us, we get the rewards. God gave me a demonstration of that the other day.

I had a tooth suddenly become sensitive to cold and hot. I called my dentist. He was booked solid, but his associate had an opening. After testing the tooth for sensitivity and taking x-rays, it was determined that I needed a root canal. I started an antibiotic and went back one week later.

The root canal was not all that bad. The dentist is very good, hardly felt anything. I had a delightful dental assistant who tucked a blanket around me and was kind and considerate, funny, and very caring. When the dentist completed the root canal, he patted my shoulder and said, “Thank you for letting me help you!”

I was stunned. After 16 surgeries, numerous procedures, numerous root canals, office visits, infusions, and other such stuff, I have never had a provider thank me for letting him/her help me. I have gotten postcards thanking me for my ‘patronage,” but never thanking me for allowing them to relieve my pain.

In those few simple words, I saw my Savior and LORD. He moves into our lives when we are without hope, without help, without a future. He relieves our pain and gives us life. And in the end, when we stand before Him in glory, He thanks us.

There are rewards in glory, there are even crowns in glory waiting for us. Five of them are mentioned in the New Testament. (The imperishable crown, the crown of rejoicing, the crown of righteousness, the crown of glory, and the crown of life.)

Isn’t it amazing! Our LORD will one day say, “Thank you for letting me help you.”

0 comment
FacebookEmail

Daily Bread

by TerryLema

We had our first real snow this past week. It began Thursday night and we woke up to about four inches where we live in Caldwell. It stayed cold so it did not melt in the afternoon and Friday brought even more. Looking out Saturday morning we had around six inches. It was beautiful!

Friday morning when Bob went out to fill the bird feeder, he had to scrape about three inches off the feeder before he could lay down the seeds. I was watching and apparently so were the little birds that had spent the night hidden in the deep recesses of the cedar trees we have in the back. Suddenly they popped out and began to chirp loudly. Some flew to the tree on the other side of the fence behind the feeder and continued to chirp.

Before Bob even made it back to the house, about 50 little birds swooped into the feeder and began their morning feeding.

Those little birds and their very vocal response to Bob feeding them always thrill my soul. I do not know what they are saying. Maybe they are chirping “it’s about time,” or announcing to others, “breakfast is being served!”  What I like to think is that they are saying, “thank you.”

“Thank you for our daily bread.”

When Jesus taught His disciples how to pray in Matthew 6 and Luke 11, he told them to include this request, “Give us today our daily bread.”

I pray that we remember each day to thank Our Father for His provision for us—like those little birds chirp their thanksgiving to Bob each day. Amen.

0 comment
FacebookEmail

Learned Your Lesson?

by TerryLema

I grew up learning what were called the rules of common courtesy. Requests contained the word “please” and were follow with the words, “thank you.” Another’s thank you was to be responded to with, “You’re welcome.” We were to hold doors open for others. Stand in the presence of elders. Greet people with a handshake and a smile. Not interrupt when someone was talking but wait for a pause in the conversation. I tried to pass these common courtesies on to my children.

I say all that because this morning I am laughing at myself. I often use the “Alexa” function on my Kindle, or the “Hey Google” function on my phone to set an alarm or a timer. This morning it was, “Alexa, set a timer for 45 minutes starting now.”

To which Alexa (on my Kindle) responded, “Setting a timer for 45 minutes starting now.” Then I told my automated “Alexa” system, “thank you.” It did not acknowledge my thank you nor respond with “You’re welcome.” You know you’ve learned your “thank you” common courtesy well when you say it to an inanimate object.

But have I learned my “thank you” common courtesy well? Especially when my thanksgiving should be offered to God for all He has done and is doing and will do for me. Do I thank Him on the difficult days as well as the pleasant ones? Do I thank Him amid the trials, or the pain, or the discouragement, or the grief?

I hope I do. I try to do so. I’m just not sure I do it enough. “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise – the fruit of lips that confess his name” [Heb 13:15]

0 comment
FacebookEmail