Its been a long time since I blogged, although I have several drafts sitting there which never got posted. One was about what had happened to me this year up to that point, one was about the subject we were looking at in our book study group which was about our "true selves" by Richard Rhor or as Paul Young says "the truth of our being" or called differently by others who have written about the subject such as Brennan Manning and Thomas Merton. But all posts seemed to revolve around me. In the end I wasn't comfortable with posting any of them.
But today as I was walking the dog I started thinking about all the things I can be grateful for during the past year, (especially the fact I can still walk the dog!), which far outweigh the negatives. So on this last day of 2024 I would like to list just some of the things I am grateful for:
Having been blessed by getting two sibling labrador puppies in 2023, it became too much for me so I am grateful that my son, David, offered to have one of them.
I am grateful for the GP who insited I had an x-ray where they discovered I had lung cancer & subsequently because it was discovered early I didnt need further treatment after my surgery.
I am grateful for all the doctors & nurses who gave me such good care
I am grateful for my lovely family for taking care of me afterwards & particulary Nic who came to every appointment with me. But, to be honest, I am grateful for my amazing, wonderful family all the time.
I am grateful that I recovered so well I could have a week away in Devon shortly afterwards and, more recently, a holiday in Yorkshire and Northumberland, walking and catching up with friends.
I am grateful for all the amazing staff at the specialist vet facility who looked after Penny when she contracted meningitis.
I am grateful for all the friends who have stood by me this year & those who have kept me in their prayers
I am grateful for our book study group, who are really just a group of friends who have wanted to stay in touch, to explore more of who Father, Son & Spirit really are, & who are there for each other with love & absolutely no judgement, even if we don't always agree.
I am grateful for my local church family, who although very small, have loved me unconditionally
And although there is so much more to be grateful for, as we move into 2025, I am just grateful to be alive, to know I am loved not only by family & friends, but by my Father, knowing I am His daughter, & that there is nothing I can do to make Him love me more & nothing I ever do will make Him love me less. Love is His very character & Love is the only thing that can save this world. So let's go forward in this year really understanding what it means to love our neighbour as ourselves because to love ourselves is to know how much He loves us and to discover our true selves. Only then can we love others.
May the peace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of the Father & the wisdom of the Holy Sprit be with you all this year.
Love & Blessing
Sue
If you would like to join our weekly book studies on Mondays at 7pm GMT please email me at thefatherheartjourney@gmail.com It is a very relaxed evening looking at books written by "Christian" authors.
As a final note I am going to try and attach a song by Brandon Lake called "Gratitude". I first heard it during my cancer journry and there is a line in it which says there's a lion in your lungs, it refers to us praising God but I saw it as the Lion of Judah being in my lungs and healing them!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27pjSdy6vWk
The heading for this post was created by AI and not me!! 😳