#1586-1558 Gifts Loved:: Lingering on my back porch as the rain pours into my garden; Warm days and blooming flowers; My hubby of 25 years!
#1559-1561 Gifts Read:: "Meditating on the Word" by Deitrich Bonhoeffer; "A Father Who Keeps His Promises" by Scott Hahn; and I re-read "The Precious Present" by Spencer Johnson.
#1562-1564 A Gift in Faith::God's sustaining presence in everything I do; Family:: Lots of helpers for dad even if they live far away; Freedom:: Ability to worship as I please.
#1565-#1567 Gifts in Red:: Stripes on our flag to remind us of the blood shed for our freedom; White:: The empty spaces that remind us of those who died to give us a freedom most of us cannot comprehend; Blue:: A color many of wore today to offset red and white accessories as we all celebrated the true gift of being a Nation of Independence.
#1568-1570 Gifts of Persistence:: Keeping up with my daily 'graces' as I write this blog; Finishing my very long trek through Proverbs 31:10-31 as I write one more entry in my Women of Worth Ministries blog; Writing my Linger Longer at least monthly at my Linger Longer With Gail blog.
#1571-1573 Gifts of Enthusiasm:: Having enough energy to put mulch into 1/4 acre of gardens this morning with some 'enthusiastic' helpers;
#1574-1576 Gifts of Challenge:: Sharing words that affirm and motivate others;
Conflict:: Learning how my 'buttons' and their 'buttons' can be 'pushed' at the most profound moments; Change:: I love change. The weather is my most favorite gift of change. It was 92 and so humid I could not sit on my porch. Then it rained! It is cool and breezy and such a fabulous evening - all because of change.
#1577-1579 Gifts of Water:: Indoor plumbing! Cooling rain that soaks into the garden; the cleanest form of hydration - I love drinking water all day.
#1580-1582 Gifts of Rhythm:: Paul's words in Romans 8 have a pace that helps me memorize two verses each week. Rhyme:: Nothing rhymes with Orange - yet. One never knows what will pop up. Reason:: Paul's gift of reason helps me to understand his long, repetitive sentences until they actually make sense.
#1583-1585 Gifts in Weakness:: When I am weak, God takes over and gives me strength I did not know I had; Although it's early and I have not eaten before a doctor's appointment and I feel distant, I have an encounter with someone who totally lifts my spirits as we find commonality in a tiny church in a very tiny town. Totally a God thing! Our Creative God fills my personal weakness of non-creativity with amazingly creative affirmations.
#1589-1591 Gifts of Life:: Good health; Growth:: I learn something new each day - especially when I am memorizing scripture; Decline:: My age is showing with the beginnings of a double chin! Does it make me look wise?
#1592-1594 Gifts Curled:: My hair on a hot, sticky day; Day Lily leaves as they new buds open each day; Ribbon as I draw my scissor blade to the end.
#1595-1597 Gifts Yellow:: HOT sun! My favorite T-shirt; squash blooms.
#1598-1600 Gifts of Stone:: My herb garden path; My garden wall filled with rose blooms; Tiny formations around the garden that I made from a yard filled with buried stones.
#1601-1603 Gifts Hanging Down:: My husband's head as he fell asleep reading the newspaper after a very long day; Limbs of our huge fur tree as they begin to envelope a corner of our yard; My arms after I type too long - to relax my shoulders a bit.
#1604-1606 Gifts Learned: Another way to meditate on God's Word; A greater depth of the Mass as I continue to read The Mass of the Early Christians by Aquilina; How to relax when my memory work is not being retained as quickly as I desire.
#1607-1609 Gifts Musical:: My hubby's new love for classical music, especially Vivaldi :-); His early morning singing while I am too groggy to speak; Praise music as well as classic hymns.
#1610-1612 Gifts Baked:: Molasses bread - our staple for desert; Fresh scones at our favorite coffee shop; Chocolate chip Cookies!
#1613-1615 Gifts in Light:: Sparkle in the birdbath; Dark:: Quiet, sleep; Shadow:: Amazing images that make life fun.
#1616-1618 Gifts in Story:: We each have a story to share so others can remember meeting us; Story helps us remember, especially when the preacher is helping us to remember to live like Christ Jesus; A friend shared his favorite passage from Homer and the story encouraged my journey. We are almost at Ithaca but the journey continues.
#1619-1621 Gifts of Understanding:: Listening hard to my hubby's oratory on microbiology so I can understand his interest; Memorizing passages in Romans 8 in order to understand the Apostle Paul's gift of apologetics; Understanding another as we discuss our differing views on the way Christians worship and draw closer to the Lord, thy God.
#1622-1624 Gifts High:: Our invisible, eternal, omnipotent God who seems high and lofty and is also embedded in my heart through the power of the Holy Sprit;
Far Away:: My new job, to which the Lord has definitely drawn hubby and me, is a one hour drive away.
#1625-1627 Gifts of Sand:: Great weight in glass jars with votive candles; Mixed with our heavy clay soil, my plants can grow! I miss the squiggle of my toes in sea sand when I visit Florida.
#1628-1630 Gifts of Endings: Laying my head on my pillow at the end of a long day; I made it all around the house and ended my weeding in the back yard; The end is near on my study of the Woman of Worth in Proverbs 31 on my blog: Women of Worth .
#1631-1633 Gifts Fresh:: Cool air in the early morning - especially after a skunk visited us last night and it's smell seeped into our house; Bed sheets just after they have dried outside; Green Peppers and Tomatoes just picked from our backyard garden.#1634-1636 Gifts On Vacation:: Taking one is a gift. At Home:: My back porch which I so love in the summer; In Relaxation:: Lingering over my wonderful garden this year, oh my!
#1637 - 1639 Gifts of Beginnings:: Each day I wake up begins new discoveries; Each new book I open begins a new adventure in my heart; Each new discovery I make begins another path of learning.
#1643- 1645 Gifts Hard: Planning another year of formation for Women of Worth; Digging and cutting that makes my garden always look beautiful; Cooking - a gift to my hubby- is not easy for me.
#1646-1648 Gifts Difficult: Walking the path of righteousness when I'd rather step off of it for awhile; As a leader, helping others to 'join the team' going forward as we grow a church; Finding the best way to 'go forth and make disciples of all nations' without lots of prayer.
