Gratitude Journal #13

Enjoying Easter Monday...(which is a holiday here)...I spent the afternoon enjoying a beautiful spring day with friends.

Throughout the spring and summer, there are fields of flowers where you can go and cut flowers. It is "self-service" - cut your flowers (with the knives provided) and drop your money in the cash box. Currently, the "in season" flower is tulips. I stopped by a tulip field today, to cut some flowers, and well, had fun taking some fun spring pictures along the way.

And here's the cultural lesson that these two pictures show. Jenny and Julia, two of my campers, tell me that the first picture clearly proves that I am American. My expressive and exuberant excitement is clearly American. The second picture, according to Jenny and Julia, is much more German-like. A German (who is more reserved than an American) would say that the second picture shows that I am excited about the beauty of the tulips.

What I am thankful for:
*beautiful spring weather & sunshine
*the colors of spring - tulips, daffodils, crocuses, trees budding, etc.
*fun times with friends
*good conversation
*friends who remind me who God has created me to be
*chocolate raspberry brownies (I dug out an old favorite recipe that I haven't used in a while. And I plan to share the goodness with friends.:)
*a long weekend with some extra time to rest and focus on the cross
*my salvation. That Christ loves me enough to enough a horrible death on the cross.
*that Christ lives!
*all of the resurrection hymns that we sung on Sunday & the glorious truth that they speak of
*that my support team continues to grow and strengthen

What I want:
*to continue to get good rest
*to continue to lay down my stubborn independence and ask for help when I need it - whether that be from God or people.
*to remember the strengths that God has given me and to focus on how He wants to use me, rather than continually beating myself up over my weaknesses
*instead of wallowing in my brokenness, I want to praise God for how He works in my weaknesses and how He uses challenges to grow us
*to make good progress this week on the summer English curriculum (it would be REALLY nice to be able to finish it this week!)
*to trust God and find joy in changes and question marks, rather than letting them discourage me or cause me stress.
*to truly and accurately understand God's love for me
*"...that I may know him and the power of his resurrection..." (Phil. 3:10)