Today I am thankful for God's written word and His promises.  I am thankful that I have the ability to make choices and to ask God for the wisdom to make the right ones.

I am thankful for my family and my friends.

I am thankful that I am able to write these words here (even though I have not been here in a while), so that they might inspire someone else in some way.

I am thankful that God has shown me that it matters NOTHING what other's opinions of me are.  It is only HIM that matters to me only.  God matters and MY OWN happiness matters, nobody else's opinions factor into my life anymore.

I am thankful that through God I am learning and growing more and more every day.

I am TRULY thankful for all that I have been blessed with, the good times and the bad and for all that I ever will be in Christ Jesus!

Happy Thanksgiving to all!!!! 

I really don't think so.

Hello everyone well I was out of town for a couple days and had a nice Thanksgiving with my daughter. So today I am thankful for safe travel and my God protects me allways. He does watch over me and although it is appointed unto man once to die which means I will die someday I know that I can trust God to be with me always and so can you if you ask Amen.

I hope you all had a great day yesterday. Be blessed and be a blessing

Cindy

If you knew how much I needed this today!  I am going through some personal things and this is one of the answers that I was looking for ~ it is amazing how God will provide the answers when you least expect it~ I think my inner peace is coming!  I just have to turn it over to the Lord!!

Lord ~

YOU know my inner stuggle, I give it over to YOU and ask that YOU take control and give me the peace that passes all human understanding!  I know that YOU are in control and that when I try to take control, I mess things up ~ please show me the way to go and forgive me for the human in me that thinks that I can fix things myself.  YOU know what is going to happen and everything will happen according to YOUR plans!  Thank YOU for all the blessings in my life ~ there are so many!  Make me more aware of them everyday!!  Amen!

Psalm 18:2
The Lord is my Rock, my Fortress, and my Deliverer; my God, my keen and firm Strength in Whom I will trust and take refuge, my Shield, and the Horn of my salvation, my High Tower.

Amen and amen

I'd like to thank the Good Lord for my wonderful friends here at SA. May each and every one find Peace and Joy on this day
I am so fortunate to be alive, and to be here. Thank you Lord.

I just want to say that I am so thankful for my online friends!  The ones that I have come so much to depend on lately!  The ones that set me in my place, the ones that tell that tomorrow is another day, the ones that tell me that everything is okay, the ones that tell me that they understand.  The ones that love me even though I am me ~ a lot like my Lord! 

Thank you all for understanding when the smiles don't always come and the little mean brat shows herself!!  I love you all and you are a blessing in my life.  I thank God for each and everyone of you!!  You all mean the world to me!

The Lord has shown me that there are so many types of people in the world and we have to pray for each of them. We don't know who will reach out to him and as a christian we know we are all Gods creatures so this morning I say a prayer to all of his children and I thank him for dying on that cross for everyone Amen

I would like to thank the Lord for bringing family together for one last time.  My husband and I had been talking about visiting my family in Germany (my mother is one of four daughters and only her and her one sister live her), but we never seemed to get around to it.  Then we won two round-trip tickets to Germany.  Well, that made the decision for us, since we had to book by a certain date.  We went in March and had a great time visiting with everyone.  Then in August was my Tante's 80th birthday party.  My mother has hypothyroid problems and was making all kinds of excuses why she couldn't go (what if something happened to her over there, how does she get water for her medication after security....).  After much prodding from me and our relatives over there, she finally gave in; and my father and her booked their flights a month before the birthday party.  It was a major to do, and this was the first time in quite awhile that all four sisters were together at the same time.  It was a very good year for all.  Then, several weeks ago, my Onkel passed away (the same Tante's husband).  Now, I know that it was the Lord who made this happen.  He knew my Onkel would be leaving us soon, and he wanted us to be there one last time with him before he left us.  You see, the Lord has reasons for everything and will make things happen when he wants when he sees the need.  I'm sure there was more to our visits than I can see yet, but I'm sure I will learn what it is when he wants me to see.

To walk upright before him is what I want to do. I have made many mistakes in my life but the great news is that I can get it right as I grow with the Lord. That doesn't mean I am perfect it just means there is the Holy Spirit living in me and he guides me so I try and listen to him so that I will not make the same mistakes over and over.

Be blessed and be a blessing

I want you all to know that if you let him Jesus becomes so real in your life. He becomes your best friend and he is as real to me as my husband in the sense that I can share everything with him and it's like he is in the same room with me. He is just not in physical form. To have someone who knows you completely and loves you more than you could imagine. He will let me know when I mess up he will let me know that I am his pride and joy. Wow what a joy to be loved so much. I hope everyone finds that love.

It hits a nerve with me when I see someone try to harm someone else for personal gain or satisfaction.  I found this and it is a good reminder of what God says about those.

First and foremost, God considered gossip to be such a serious matter that He included the avoidance of it as one of the Ten Commandments. "Thou shall not bear false witness against your neighbor" (Exodus 20). When you repeat something you heard from someone else, or share a story where you're not 100% certain the facts are correct, or even share information about another person that will only bring them harm and not good, you are bearing false witness against them. Since the second greatest commandment is "Love your neighbor as yourself," you would be breaking that one as well by gossiping. Would you gossip about yourself to others? If not, then why commit that act against your neighbor?

In the book of Romans, Paul reveals the sinful natures and lawlessness of mankind, stating how God was pouring out His wrath upon those who were rejecting His laws. Because they had turned away from God's instruction and guidance, He gave them over to their sinful natures. "They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them" (Romans 1:29b-32). God still does the same today. Many reject Him and His word, so He allows them to be ruled by their sinful nature and depraved minds.

Another group who was and is commonly known for indulging in this sinful behavior is widows. Timothy cautions widows against entertaining the habit of gossip and of being idle. "Thus they bring judgment on themselves, because they have broken their first pledge. Besides, they get into the habit of being idle and going about from house to house. And not only do they become idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying things they ought not to" (1 Timothy 5:12-13). Because women tend to spend a lot of time in each other's homes or working closely with other women and getting involved in many people's lives, they hear and observe a variety of conversations or situations which have the potential to become distorted, if what they see is not kept private. Timothy stated that widows get into the habit of going from home to home, looking for something to occupy their idleness. Idle hands are the devil's workshop, and God cautions against allowing that sin to enter our lives.

Now, women are not the only ones who have been found guilty of this sin. Anyone can engage in the act of gossip simply be repeating something heard in confidence. The book of Proverbs has a long list of verses that cover the dangers of gossip and the potential hurt that results when care is not taken to think of the other person and how he/she might react if something they wanted kept private is revealed. "A man who lacks judgment derides his neighbor, but a man of understanding holds his tongue. A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy man keeps a secret" (Proverbs 11:12-13).

Many times, people are asked to keep a secret, but they find the secret too good *not* to share. So, they tell just one person, thinking it'll be all right if only one other person knows. But, then that one person tells one who tells another who tells someone else, etc. Before long, what was originally repeated has become distorted and barely resembles the truth it was at the start. The problem began when the person who agreed to keep a secret, didn't stick to the promise made. There's a saying that states, "Two people can keep a secret, if one of them is dead." That saying didn't just become known without a significant measure of truth in it. "A perverse man stirs up dissension, and a gossip separates close friends" (Proverbs 16:28).

Think about a time when you witnessed the destruction of a friendship over a misunderstanding that started with gossip. Those who engage in this behavior do nothing but stir up dissension and cause strife among friends. There is nothing honorable in their actions, and their own struggles or shortcomings are covered up by their desire to bring someone else down rather than focusing on the areas in their own lives which need work. Some people thrive on this and look for opportunities to destroy others. And when people like this are confronted, they deny the allegations and answer with an excuse for why they've done what they have. Rather than admit their wrong, they blame someone or something else, or attempt to make it sound like the sin committed isn't so bad. "A fool's mouth is his undoing, and his lips are a snare to his soul. The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to a man's inmost parts" (Proverbs 18:7-8).

Gossip usually hits deep. The topics that are "too good not to share" are generally ones that end up inflicting deep and cutting wounds to a person's inner being. And the betrayal almost always comes from someone close to the person affected. Gossip is bad enough when it comes from someone who is simply looking for a source of information they can share. But, when it begins with a trusted friend or someone who has been taken into a confidence, the betrayal cuts deep to the soul, making it even harder for the one on the receiving end to forgive. "A gossip betrays a confidence; so avoid a man who talks too much" (Proverbs 20:19).

Those people who are considered "busybodies" are easily spotted and are usually in the center of the action, flitting from one situation to the next, seeking out a tidbit of information they can use to spread to others. They'll talk to just about anyone, pretending to care or be genuinely interested in what is being said to them, when all the while, their minds are racing ahead to the first person to whom they can repeat their conversation. Gossips are only in it for themselves and the perverted pleasure it brings them to tear others down.

But, God promises light at the end of the tunnel. "A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who pours out lies will [perish] not go free" (Proverbs 19:5). The righteous will overtake the house of the wicked and bring them to ruin (Proverbs 21:12). Those who guard their mouths and tongues keep themselves from calamity (Proverbs 21:23). So, guard your tongue and refrain from the sinful act of gossip. Surrender your natural desires to the Lord and allow Him to help you remain righteous. Love your neighbor as yourself and don't sin against them in any way that you wouldn't also do to yourself. God rewards the just and the righteous, so strive to remain as such.

I'd like to thank the Lord for using his servant to remind me that the sins of pride and vanity will always be with me, until such time as we are all cleansed. Please help me to overcome my sins of pride and vanity and to be meek, because all is dust.
Lord help me to be helpful to others, and not a stone in their path.
Help me to be thankful for the gifts you have given me.
And thank you Lord that Jeff's eye exam went well and his condition is not progressing. That is a true blessing and I am grateful.