MARCH JOY DARE

The wonder of JOY is that the same prompts from last year seem to elicit a different response this year.  JOY grows. Gifts of THANKSGIVING are a new delight each day, especially when giving thanks for challenging times.  So, here goes another month of Eucharisteo, Thanks Be to God.

#1269-1271 Gifts at 3pm:: A walk on the beach; the ability to cough as my lungs fill up with tiny spores from the Red Tide; tiny bird feet tracks in the sand.



#1272-1274 Gifts Green:: Fabulous Botanical Gardens; Acres of vegetation; Endless scenes of nature.

#1275-1277 Gifts Worn:: Several layers as the tropics became chilly; Bodies of friends who have aged since I last saw them; God's grace covering my soul.

#1278-1280 Gifts Hard to Give Thanks for:: Cold weather that does not leave when I came south to warm up; my visit to Florida without seeing my father (he had to return North for better care); Hard work fixing dad's place instead of lingering in the sun.

#1281-1283 Gifts Found:: Lovely shells; Time to work on this blog; Space in my suitcase to fit one more thing as I travel home.
#1284-1286 Gifts Bent:: Objects pulled from my suitcase  Broken:: Long distant conversations with hubby that are now in the past  Beautiful:: The sight of home and hubby and eye-to-eye conversation.

I saw this often when I live in Florida but never took a photo.
Now that I am a visitor, I am drawn to this much-visited pier.

#1287-1289 Gifts in the Kitchen:: A fresh pot of bean soup with ham hock; Fresh hummus; Fresh baked molasses bread.
#1290-1292 Gifts Loud:: Wind whistling almost non-stop; A bravely driven tractor on the farm behind us; Laughter as we run errands together.

#1293-1295 Gifts Carved:: Time for writing graces in the midst of piles of other backlogs; Deep furrows in moist soil as the farmer turns up soil; Slices of molasses bread as we consume this delicious decadence.

#1296-1298 Gifts in Christ:: Celebrating Christ's healing power in our healing service; Embracing His presence in Holy Eucharist; Hearing His Word as we digest the story of the Prodigal Son.

#1299-1301 Gifts Read::Ann Voskamp's blog today: Honk if you're happy; The book of Esther as I prepare to teach another session of Women of Worth; Books on Holy Eucharist as it was intended to be celebrated (dating back to the 1st century).

#1302-1304  Gifts in Wind:: if blowing the right direction, farmer smells go elsewhere  Gift in Water:: Sea salt and wonderful waves

The waters of the Gulf of Mexico.  Oh JOY!

in White:: My sweet tablecloth that makes everything look clean.

#1305-1307  Gifts Round:: Rocks; A favorite table; Clementines!
#1308-1310  Gifts Found in Silence:: Icy flakes hitting the window; Time to connect with God; Rest for the ears and mind.

#1311-1313  Gifts Given Away:: A bag of Wilbur's Chocolate from the small town next to us; A book I love that I hope the other will love; Breakfast at a new cafe for a friend whose car broke down.

#1314-1316  Hard Eucharisteos:: Saying 'yes' to a wonderful opportunity three hours drive away - for four weekends; Praying for one several who are fighting cancer; Quietly waiting for God's timing.

God's creation shows off "POPS" of red against green.

#1317-1319  Gifts Turned:: My eyes toward the Lord as I worship Him   Folded:: Hands in prayer as we join with others in prayer requests  Fresh Hung:: My Sunday Best, waiting to be worn as we prepare to enter the presence of the Lord.

#1320-1322  Gifts Red:: Botanical plants; My favorite room in the house; Small couch pillows.

#1323-1325  Gifts Eaten:: Clementines; Hummus; Tuna fish sandwiches.

#1326-1328  Gifts that made me Laugh:: The sun! when it pops out of gray skies; Emails from friends who share their own stories; Friends in conversation.

#1329-1331  Gifts Salty:: Strong cheese  Sweet:: Chocolate from Cafe Chocolate in Lititiz
Just Right:: A good cup of tea!

#1332-1334  Gifts found in His Word:: Romans 1:16 ... for it is the power of God to bring salvation to everyone who believes. Romans 1:17 For in the Gospel the righteousness of God is revealed... [and] the righteous will live by faith.

#1335-1337 Gifts found in women today:: Soul Strength; Perseverance through tough times; More wisdom to know when to say, "yes" or NO to requests.

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#1338-1340  Gifts Spoken:: The Passion of Christ, always recited on Palm Sunday, as we all participated, each with a different voice;
Greetings to friends and new faces as we 'passed the peace' at church;
Conversation over a Sunday meal.

#1341-1343  Gifts Sung:: My husband singing me a 50s song that makes me smile
Written:: A rave review of my brother's new book, Road Trip!
Painted:: My sister's botanical prints I look at each morning as we awake.  Our botanical garden of art is in the bedroom.

#1344-1346  Gifts Almost Gone:: Organic chocolate a friend bought me from 'Cafe Chocolate' in Lititz, PA; My birthday balloon from my hubby from 3 months ago with helium almost gone. Love it!; The fluffy white stuff called SNOW that fell in globs today and is still coming down ... but melting just as fast.

#1347-1349  Gifts Redeemed:: The death of the first-born in Egypt in order to make Pharaoh let God's people flee Egypt and start a new life; Christ's life for anyone who believes Jesus is Lord and God raised Him from the dead; My own life through the shedding of Jesus' blood on the Cross as he took all of my sin upon himself so that I might have eternal life.

#1350-1352  Gifts Entwined:: Brush strokes that make this bird's nest look real; My life with my sweet hubby; My life with God as I feel wrapped in His love.

#1353-1355  Gifts of His Promises:: The Lord, thy God will never leave me nor forsake me; He will go before and behind and lay His hand upon me; He will give me resurrected life IF I believe in His Son, Jesus Christ.

#1356-1358  Gifts Uncovered:: Daffodil as it peaks through solid earth; The table on the porch when the tarp is removed - a promise that warm weather is almost here; hiding places for field mice as stones are removed in our very small brick wall.

God created the Butterfly to show us a perfect example
of resurrected life.  The Caterpillar 'dies' to it's old life
to be resurrected with the freedom to flit about
as a butterfly in newness of life.

#1359-1361  Gifts Heard:: Alleluia! for the first time since Ash Wednesday
Held:: The body and blood of Jesus Christ as we receive Holy Communion
Hoped for:: Resurrected Life for all who are willing to accept Jesus as God's only begotten Son.