September 19, 2012

gratitude journal ... ... [throwing J O Y giveaway]

it is simple really... there is always something to be thankful for.  the key is to slow down enough to see the somethings & to give thanks for them.
 

i began this throwing joy semi regular giveway for the same reason i spend spare time crafting menu boards and recipe binders.  my hope is to bring joy to the routine & ordinary.  but there really is no "bringing" at all.  it is all about noticing.  because, it is already surrounding you.


i want to be clear.  i am not suggesting that joy is found in a home decorated with thoughtfully handmade burlap banners, or a kitchen that is uber organized and smoothly run by recipe binders and menu boards.  when i post future giveaways for knit accessories, inspiring music, organic body lotions etc. i am not suggesting that you find joy in those things


rather, i am suggesting that joy, true joy, comes from our creator & father in heaven.  he

 created us to want  joy.  and in him we find it.  "you will make known to me the path of life;

  in your presence is fullness of joy; in your right hand there are pleasures

 forever. " psalm 16:11



over 13 years ago, my life was changed by a drab little book filled with empty lined pages.  a challenge to record three things daily…three things that i was thankful for.  most of you who know me, know that i am competitive so it is not surprising that i would dive into this.  most of you who know me, also know that I often struggle with follow-through.  so it isn’t surprising that i have had a less than perfect record of writing down three things a day, over the years.  having said that, when I am ‘actively’ recording my gratitude to him, my perspective is changed in a huge way.  it is funny, i have noticed that when i pause and take notice of his blessings in my daily life, it is as if i gain a superpower of awareness.  i begin to see him pouring out on me and all around me in both big and small ways.  he grows bigger each day and i grow smaller.

 
humbled that he loves me…loves me enough to meet me in my routine and ordinary.
 
 
just this past year my sister-in-love (we are sisters by law, but our love overrides! ) shared a book with me.  a thousand gifts, by ann voskamp.  ann’s message of gratitude.grace.joy, and the new light she sheds on familiar scriptures had me in awe at times. 


i name gifts and go back to the garden of god in the beginning who first speaks a name and lets what is come into existence.  this naming is how the first emptiness of space fills:  the naming of light and land and sky.  the first man’s first task is to name.  adam completes creation with his maker through the act of naming creatures, releasing the land from chaos.  when i name moments i am adam and i discover my meaning and god’s, and to name is to learn the language of paradise.  this naming work never ends for all the children of adam.  naming to find an identity, our identity, god’s.  the naming really does call now a gift, a gift of god.  to name a thing is to manifest the meaning and value god gave it. 

in naming that which is right before me, that

which  i’d otherwise miss, the invisible becomes

 visible.”  -ann voskamp


 
giveaway details.
included in the giveaway is:
 
one red moleskine journal, filled with empty lined pages waiting for your joy to be recorded.
&
one copy of ann voskamp's book, "a thousand gifts"
 
note:  this is a bundle. one winner will receive both




to enter.

leave a comment telling me:
 
 1. something you are thankful for...a joy found = 1 entry
2.  let me know if you've kept a gratitude journal before +1 entry
 


giveway is open until monday 09/24/12 @ 1pm (az time)

i'll pick a winner randomly and announce it before 4pm that day.

and the winner is.........
stefanie delongchamp!
congrats stefanie, please email me at pixbyemily@cox.net so that i can get your book and journal in the mail.

11 comments:

  1. I am thankful for God showing me answered prayer!!! It is amazing my Cat was gone for 1 month and I prayed yesterday fully believing that God could answer and he did!!! Larry the Cat came back !!! My Kids are so happy! GOD IS GOOD ALL THE TIME!!!

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  2. OH and no I haven't done a journal before but I am gonna start because I am so forgetful of the ways he is always faithful.

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  3. love getting to hear more of the why behind some of your joy...great post. :)

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  4. I am thankful for a loving, amazingly gentle God who blesses me even though I don't deserve it... who loves me when I'm not loving him... who watches over me when I'm not looking his direction... God is sooooo good he's so good to me!

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  5. Em... no gratitude journal before... I SOOO need to start this... but SOOO struggle with follow through too!! I am inspired!!! Thank you for your sweet entries... hugs!

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  6. i love everything about this post emily <3 i have a gratitude journal ;) but i am stopping by to say i am thankful for you!

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  7. It's interesting that this week at work during our prayer time instead of submitting prayer requests we did "popcorn" prayers of thankfulness to God. It was such a blessing to be thankful for what God has already done in our lives instead of asking for more.

    So I am thankful for the place that I work, that we can openly express our thankfulness to God! I am thankful for the wonderful women I work with and for that pour God's love and wisdom over me daily!

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  8. Oops I forgot to say, I do not have a gratitude journal & I must admit I've never had one. I like the idea of writing 3 things I am thankful for daily! :)

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    Replies
    1. hey stefanie! you are the winner! please msg me at pixbyemily@cox.net so that i can get your book & journal in the mail. congrats! so excited for your win...and HIS.

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  9. Ok, I am grateful for God's grace. I would be lost without it!

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  10. I have never had a grateful journal, but have always wanted to start one!

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