Contemplating Chapter 3

I love the Sarah Ban Breathnach quote that opens this chapter.  Splendid and brilliantly distilled truth:  Gratitude bestows reverence, allowing us to encounter everyday epiphanies, those transcendent moments of awe that change forever how we experience life and the world.  The word choices are perfection.  

What I am carefully contemplating ~

!       Change takes real intentionality…and so, THE GIFT LIST     
!   Philippians 4 – I’ve been reading that almost daily for nearly a year.
!   Thanks is what multiples the joy

©     !  Because the picking up of a pen isn’t painful and ink can be cheap medicine.

©      !   To name a thing is to manifest the meaning and value God gave it

©      ! …that the insulting ordinariness of this truly teaches the full mystery of the all most important, eucharisteo.

©    !   Crazy like this = perfect like this

©    !   OH.MY.Goodness…the big paragraph on p. 58…absolute truth and AMEN!!

I only deepen the wound of the world when I neglect to give thanks…Why would the world need more anger, more outrage?  How does it save the world to reject unabashed joy when it is joy that saves us.  Rejecting joy to stand in solidarity with suffering doesn’t rescue the suffering.  The converse does.  The brave who focus on all things good and all things beautiful…

     !  When I give thanks for the seemingly microscopic, I make a place for God to grow within me

 !       The only thing that can change us, the world, is this – all HIS love.

!        Lions would count as hard eucharisteo. 

Much of that is quoted from the book….and much of what I read and reread and reread fills me with a huge YES…that’s it!  I am so thankful that AV took the time and had the gift to let God use her to write this book. 

I never thought it was brave to focus on the good and beautiful.  In fact, I’ve occasionally been led to believe nearly the opposite.  As someone who has been accused of wearing rose colored glasses on more than one occasion…I like thinking that perhaps I’ve been brave all along.  And the paragraph on p. 58 so beautifully expresses what I believe to be true, but had not yet found words to express…it is why I practice looking for God in the daily-ness of my life.  I want to always find Him, His love and move toward that.  And yes, sometimes that is difficult, but I’ve never encountered real lions!  

The whir of the fans…the comfort of my porch…friends voices…smiling daughters…a clean and lavender scented Vanna ;)…joy!

Obviously....having difficulty formatting...and that weird little c thing was a heart when I cut and pasted it in??  drat.  Oh well, I reverted to the exclamation points...but it is getting weird...so read and please try not to be distracted by the lame formatting.  Happy Wednesday<><