Good and perfect gifts

I painted these flowers two years ago. I remember sitting outside on a breezy day under a bell-tower and just painting. I loved that. After I finished it, I drew all over it in pencil. I don't know if you can see it, but that's my favorite thing about the picture.

I don't have much of anything to post today--shocking, I know. I was looking forward to blogging this afternoon, but now that I get the chance, no grand and important ideas waltz through my head. Nothing. Zilch. Nada.

But I'm OK with this. Maybe sometimes it's better to have nothing to say. That is, nothing huge and amazing. Because God works through the littlest things of life just as much as the big things. So this post is about how God has worked in my life in a lot of seemingly "small" ways that maybe aren't so small at all...

On Friday I'm going back to Circle of Friends Camp, praise God. I'm excited to see what He will do. Volunteering is a very unique opportunity, and I love it. At camp, I have the opportunity to serve in a greater capacity...

The main thing I like about camp is the structure for service. As a volunteer, I have the responsibility of taking care of a child for the weekend (thirty hours). That means that I am expected to meet the child's physical needs, be a good friend to them, and help them have the best camp experience possible.

To accomplish these goals, I have to choose to lay down my own agenda and serve even when it gets hard. God is so good to me in this. Last Memorial Day, my little friend enjoyed being in the sun and running around a lot. I got tired and very sweaty. But when I was inwardly frustrated and when I was wearing thin, I called on God and He gave me not only strength and energy and ideas to bless my little friend but also JOY in laying down my personal agenda and preferences to make camp special for the child. God met every need I had, even the littlest things.

Of course God always meets all my needs, not just at camp! But at that time, God was opening my eyes to His blessings in an altogether new way.

God gave me joy and peace when I was frustrated. He gave me fellowship with Him when I was unable to sleep. He gave me several breaks at the times I needed them most. He gave me wonderful opportunities to serve above and beyond what was expected of me. He gave me a good partner to work with--the best possible person I could have partnered with, even though I didn't see it at first. God attuned my heart to the voice of His Holy Spirit, and He guarded my lips and kept me from saying anything I'd regret later. He wisely and tenderly guided me through each moment. And through it all, God gave me a new awareness of His blessings.

Every good thing in my life is a gift from Him. I take so many gifts for granted. How different my life would be if I lived every day in the mentality I had at camp! I was on the lookout for His blessings, and I was coming to Him for my every need. And He showed me His blessings (although I may not ever realize the full extent of His great gifts) and fulfilled my every need, even when He did it in a different way than I expected. It's like the Bible says:

"Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change." --James 1:16-17, emphasis mine

And in the words of Jesus:

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!" --Matthew 7:7-11

After camp, I made a list of all the different ways God blessed me just during camp weekend. I ended up with about 140 blessings, and those were only the ones I could see. Some were large (more-than-abundant energy on very little sleep!) and some were small.

This is how I want to live every day of my life. I want to constantly be on the lookout for blessings and see them for what they are: God's good gifts lavishly and abundantly bestowed upon me. I want to live in perpetual thanksgiving to God for every good gift--from the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ (He's the greatest gift of all!), to the kindness of a friend, to the bird outside my window. Because every truly good thing in my life is a gift from God. I ask that He would open my eyes to this reality. At camp, when I was seeing God's blessings, I was constantly praising Him for them as well as simply for Who He is. And living in such praise and joy was amazing. I want to live every day in the constant realization of God's goodness and giving thanks for that goodness constantly. God is worthy of praise at all times, not only for the gifts He's given but for Who He is. He is a most perfect and loving Father who delights in giving good gifts to His children!

I don't remember who said this, and I may not even remember it correctly, but I read this quote and I really liked it:

"Be on the lookout for God's mercies. Blessings brighten when you count them." Yes!


Hmm. I thought I didn't have much to say--but perhaps God did! What good gifts has He given you lately?