Monday 21 May 2012

Annal 162: Tale from Eucharisteo

Jeanine at "Wayfaring Girl on A Mission" wrote a post yesterday about Eucharisteo, the Greek word for life-filling gratitude.  She talked about the importance, the Biblical command, of giving thanks in EVERYTHING.  About how giving thanks acts as a "God-given, natural buffer to our souls."  About the importance of realizing that no insignificant detail is truly insignificant. We have a knack for forgetting what God has done, of who He is.  Giving thanks serves as a reminder.  We are told to give thanks in everything.

How often do I actually do this?

She then went on to make a list of the things that inspire awe in her at any given moment.

This has inspired me to do the same.  It is so easy to get bogged down with life, especially when it seems like it isn't going the way we want it to go.  I forget the things God has placed in my life, the "common, everyday" things that take my breath away.  That give me pause.  That point to Him.

And so I have decided to create my own list, a list of things that inspire awe in me causing me to give thanks, and would like to encourage others to do the same.

My Eucharisteo-Inspiring List

  • Walking outside while the sun anoints my head
  • A stirring breeze that plays with my hair, brushing it from my face
  • Mint chocolate chip ice cream
  • The snotty kisses of little children
  • Getting up early in the morning and doing my devotions with my Dad... I love how the two of us can share with each other what we are discovering about the God we serve
  • Going for drives with my oldest nephew who tells me that I am Jean Grey and he is whatever superhero appeals to him that day... we are always battling enemies and putting the car into hyper drive
  • Reading C.S. Lewis and George MacDonald
  • Reading by an open window in the midst of a rainfall
  • Homemade pizza
  • Singing and dancing along to music while doing dishes with my sisters
  • Going for late night walks beneath a star-filled sky
  • The smell and warmth of clean laundry
  • Playful banter with friends
  • Friends who know me, accept me, and love me while still encouraging me to be the woman God dreams of me becoming
  • Being given nicknames
  • The fact that when God speaks to me He does so in a way that makes sense... sometimes this is through nature, other times through BBC period pieces, and still other times through the imagery of "force fields"
  • Reading my Bible and realizing that even the way it is written points to the magnificence of God
  • A good cup of coffee... especially when shared with either a good book or good friends

  • Watching how a hug or touch can offer more hope than any words can
  • Receiving mail (and I mean real, legitimate, stamp in the top right corner mail)
  • Being able to just talk one-on-one with someone, to be completely open and have them do the same
  • Hugs, especially from children
  • Hearing the words "I love you"
  • Saying the words "I love you"
  • Running into the middle of a field, stopping, and then twirling with my arms held out and my face raised to the heavens... what I envision dancing with God to be
  • Walking in the rain


And the list could go on.  Already I have more and more things coming to my mind that still my heart and leave me breathless.  Things that seem so insignificant yet from which I derive such joy.  Things that remind of the greatness of God.  I was created in a way that these are some of the things that speak to my very being.  I don't want overlook them or take them for granted.  I want to give thanks for them.  Sometimes it will be harder than others to give thanks.  Sometimes I won't want to give a thought to this "life-filling gratitude."  But I do truly want to live a life thankful for all that God has done... for all that He has given me.

I want a life consumed by this life-filling gratitude. 

Such is the life of a Christian single.

2 comments:

  1. WOW. I love this list!!! I could feel the joy just bubbling up in me as I read it! haha...it is so awesome how God works. And His truths can be so profoundly simple and I just love that. Why do we make things so complicated all the time?

    So glad you shared your list :))) Love!!

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    1. Thank you for inspiring me to create this list :) I totally viewed this day through a different lens and was much more thankful!

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