So. Very. Thankful.

As I'm counting
the hours until I get to see
my family,
I'm realizing just how thankful
I am for this opportunity
to see my parents, sister,
grandparents, aunts, uncles,
cousins, and friends again.

You see,
a couple of weeks ago,
I was really convicted that
I wasn't living in the here and now.
I was all too dependent on
what I thought was the promised future.
I thought I had everything figured out.
And I just had all these ideas of what
my life was going to look like in ten years.
It's not that God has taken away that hope.
I still hope to one day
get married,
have children,
travel a little,
serve the Lord well in a local Body.
But He's given me an urgency to live
in the here and now.
I should be striving for the future.
But I can't stop living for today.
I'm not promised my next breath.
I don't know when the Lord
will call me home, or when
He will return for His Church.
But He has given me this day
to serve Him faithfully.

In this whole realization,
I knew I had taken for granted
all the time that I had spend with my family.
I had never really cherished it.
I mean, it was just time with them.
I was always going to get to see them again.
I was always going to spend time with them again.
So why did it matter if I really invested in their lives
when I saw them?
But it does!
It does matter so much!
I have this opportunity to love my family,
to care for them,
and invest in their lives for the sake of the Gospel,
for the sake of the Body.
I have this opportunity to encourage them
to pursue Christ and godliness.

So,
this season of Thanksgiving,
encourage the Body I shall.
I pray that I might have opportunities
for Gospel conversations,
for times of encouragement,
for times of fun, laughter, and just good talks.
May God be greatly glorified in the time
I have with my family.

I'm not taking this upcoming week for granted
this time.
I'm going to treasure it,
cherish it.
Because, honestly,
I don't know the next time
I'll get to see them.
As hard as it is for me to
wrap my mind around that fact,
I know that the Lord has great plans.
I may not know the next time I'll see them.
But I know who does.
And He is faithful.

Well,
while I'm in Texas,
there are some things
that I'll be doing.
Ready for the Bucket List?

Thanksgiving Bucket List 2012
- eat at Saltgrass Steak House
- eat some Rudy's BBQ!
- visit Ron and Fran
- play bocci with my sister
- do crafty things with my sweet mom
- go to the Cowboys game with my dad
- watch a movie & eat some popcorn with the fam
- go to the zoo!!
- Turkey Trot 5k walk
- shopping at the Outlets
- family game night
- cuddle with my mom
- hang out in the hot tub
- long talks with different family members
- hug people. a lot.
- take lots of family pics
- buy HEB fruit jelly
- have a slumber party with my 13-year-old cousin and invest in her
- love my family. well.


I've been waiting for this week
since August.
I can't believe that it's finally time
to leave.
I only have 30 hours til I see
some of my favorite people's faces.

The Lord is gracious.
I am so thankful
that He is allowing me to go see them.
So thankful.

Blessings