The Blessing of Family

This last weekend I spent with my extended family, the Kruse clan....four generations were present. It was a wonderful time with memories shared and memories made. We gathered where my grandparents made their home, taking a tour of the area, sharing stories with one another and realizing we are a part of something incredible. Incredible because two people fell in love and throughout the last ninety-some years God has preserved something special....the love of family.

I was reminded of the story in the Bible from Joshua Chpt. 4 (read full story here), when God had the Israelites place rocks by the river and then told them, "When your children ask their fathers in times to come, ‘What do these stones mean?' then you shall let your children know...." God wanted His people to know "His hand was mighty." My dad's siblings and their children had a personal relationship with my grandparents, but the next generation (my children) and the generations to come will have the stories passed down to them of the faithfulness of a God that worked and is working in our family.

My grandfather owned a grain elevator and made his children the stockholders. Lessons were learned and passed down. We toured the little town where this elevator is located, and were treated to a history lesson. As I listened I  realized that although my grandparents were gone and the elevator has been sold, God was faithful in all that transpired and we can be proud of the legacy left in that little town. You can still see "Kruse Grain Co." on the side of the elevator. One day it will be worn off, but for now, we could still see what once was.

My grandparents' place is home to another family now and as we drove up it seemed so small compared to what I remembered as a child. The yard is where I saw my first firefly and was enthralled. I placed a few in a jar and it sat on my bedside table that night, a very unique nightlight!




As I thumbed through a scrapbook at the reunion, I came across the Final Will and Testament that was left for us and the generations to come. Material things come and go as attested to the pictures above, but my grandparents and aunts and uncles left us with something much more valuable. We are blessed beyond measure.

Final Will and Testament

Kruse Grain Company

Knowing that neither man nor businesses last forever here on this earth, we the stockholders bequeath the following intangibles to our children and their descendants:

Article I: House

To each of our children, we hope to leave a home built with the solid bricks of faith in God and self-esteem. May your houses have windows of empathy and doors that open both ways.

Article II: Vehicles

May our children be provided with some means of transportation to take them beyond themselves: an absorbing hobby, a service to others that only they can perform, a talent or favorite recreation that renews their spirit.  We leave to you a desire to transport others and leave them in a quiet place of peace with themselves and God.

Article III: Personal Items

We bequeath to each of our children a jewel box filled with glistening memories: of family Sunday dinners, good food, times of working together and times of traveling together. All the things that made us laugh and cry together, of tender moments of birth and rebirth and each talent loaned from God. Long summers filled with picnics, detasseling, beanwalking, vacations, cold winters with hot chocolate, snowmobiling and Christmas.  We leave a bag of tiny diamonds made of things such as: shared personal moments, family prayer, mealtime graces, valentines, school programs and our pride in your smallest acomplishments.

Article IV:  Stocks and Bonds

Finally, we would leave our children and their descendants, enough stock in the bonds of faith to move mountains, enough hope in the promises of God as recorded in His Word the Bible for all future generations. We bequeath enough love, the greatest gift of all, and without which we would be nothing at all.  The kind of love our Lord Jesus Christ has for us.  The kind of love that is patient and kind, never jealous or envious, never boastful or proud, and never haughty or selfish or rude.  Love that does not demand its own way and is not irritable or touchy.  This kind of love does not hold grudges and will hardly even notice when others do wrong.  This kind of love is what your grandmother and founding mother of this corporation believed in and strove to have for her descendants.  We want to pass this on to you.

Article V: Taxes

Before taxes are levied on this estate, please deduct (and forgive) cross words spoken, times of being too busy to listen and missed apologies.

Signed by the Present Stockholders

Joshua 24:15 “Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, ........But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

I am grateful.....

Detox with Gratitude

I am taking classes on my way to a degree in naturopathic medicine. It is fascinating. One of the topics that comes up time and again is the importance of detoxing the body. We are inundated with many noxious substances that are present in the foods we eat, the air we breathe, the products we use, and even the busyness of life releases an overload of stress hormones that can be toxic to us.

God has gifted our bodies with amazing capabilities to rid itself of these substances, but we must take care to implement good habits for the body to do so.

As I have read on this subject (and am trying to implement some of the practices into my own life) I was somewhat surprised to see that the first (and probably most important) step in detoxing one's body, is to detox the mind.

"In a disordered mind, as in a disordered body, soundness of health is impossible." ~Cicero

"It's vital...to cleanse the mind/the brain/the head so we are clearer with our goals and more able to understand ourselves so we can change what we need to change.  A clear head helps clear mind-fog, enhances focus, improves memory, brings mental and emotional clarity and when we're stress free, our body's systems flow optimally.

When stressed and anxious, the body produces the hormone, cortisol, and in excessive amounts, apart from causing premature aging, it's the West's biggest killer and the underlying cause of the majority of illness and disease. Yes, of course sometimes life brings sadness and grief....but by leading a healthy lifestyle, having a calm mind and being grounded, we are able to deal with these situations like the clouds in the sky that come and go." (Angie Newson, The Detox Factor)

For the last two years I have been practicing gratitude, journaling my blessings. I was awed to realize that gratitude is the first step to "detoxing" the mind.

Simply being thankful.

"Practicing gratitude helps us put life into perspective - so instead of wasting time complaining, being negative, gossiping or moaning, start to look for the positive in any situation - it is usually buried somewhere even if you think it isn't. Practicing gratitude makes us less anxious, less depressed and releases tension so we are not always demanding more or wanting something else. The mind and body becomes calmer, our inner workings are less stressed and our digestive system can work as it was designed to. And practicing gratitude can also help you to feel less lonely, it lowers blood pressure and boosts our immune system." (Newson)

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Phil. 4:6-7

Yes, lifting our lives to God, with thanksgiving, will bring peace of mind.

The mind becomes clear and calm when we realize all comes from Him, to whom all thanks is due. We can rest in His goodness. Look for it today and begin the journey to a more healthy you!!

"Gratitude is nutrition for a living relationship." ~Steve Maraboli

I have learned and am learning the importance of simply saying "thank you."


**A wonderful resource, next to the Bible, in beginning a journey of gratefulness, is Ann Voskamp's book, One Thousand Gifts. Also check out her website, aholyexperience.com.

Focus...On His Goodness

I never thought I would be using my skills I learned as a childbirth educator to aid my daughter in getting through the pain of a kidney stone.

The pain was excruciating. The pain meds would not stay down. As her husband drove the ten miles back to town to get another prescription, we began breathing exercises.

"Focus! You must focus! Look at me....breathe in.....breathe out.....  Yes, the pain is out of this world, but you can ride it. Breathe in....breathe out..... Focus on my face. Breathe in comfort, exhale tension. Picture something soft, cuddly. Breathe in.... breathe out..... Focus." And it continued for an hour.....

Yes, I may have sounded strange, but research has shown that we can reduce the sensation of pain by focusing our thoughts away from it. This was at the heart of the childbirth classes I used to teach.

We must choose our focus.

As I lay in bed after the fact, I thought about how we handle the trials of life. So many times, we tense with frustration, anxiety, worry, and even anger. This will only intensify our pain, much like thrashing on the floor when in physical pain.

Can we apply this same principle to life that I taught women in navigating the pain of labor? To focus? Focus our thoughts on something other than our pain?

Yes...

Rather than dwelling on the trials and tribulations of life, we can choose to focus on God's goodness. His faithfulness to us in all moments of life.

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
    come before him with joyful songs.
Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
    we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving
    and his courts with praise;
    give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
    his faithfulness continues through all generations. ~Psalm 100

Focus...on His goodness....His love. 

Breathe in....the knowledge that you are His. 

Breathe out....praise to Him.

We enter His gates with our thanksgiving and praise. Our days will be brighter, the pain a little duller....when focusing on Him.

My daughter told me later she focused on our textured ceiling...she counted the bumps. Counted....count (focus on) the ways Jesus is good to you. Trust me....you will see joy springing forth.  

Breathe in....the knowledge that you are His. Breathe out.....praise to Him.

I am learning to focus....on His goodness.

Thanksgiving: A National Holiday

I love Thanksgiving...not only the turkey and the fixin's, but the family and friends that gather together and...

.....give thanks.

Most of us when we think of Thanksgiving, think of the first Thanksgiving the Pilgrims and Indians held; but did you know that President Lincoln, during the Civil War, instituted the fourth Thursday of November as a national holiday? A day of "Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father?" I was so moved when I read his decree that I deemed it worthy to post in hopes that we look at this holiday in the light for which it was instituted.

 

By the President of the United States of America.

A Proclamation.

The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God. In the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre of military conflict; while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union. Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defence, have not arrested the plough, the shuttle or the ship; the axe has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country, rejoicing in the consiousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom. No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity and Union.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at the City of Washington, this Third day of October, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the Independence of the Unites States the Eighty-eighth.

By the President: Abraham Lincoln

William H. Seward,
Secretary of State

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. Psalm 118:29

May we give thanks not only on the fourth Thursday of each November, but every day of the year.

....and his decree was on my birthday! :) How neat is that?! I now have another item to be thankful for on my birthday!

The Discovery of Blessings

I love reading H. Jackson Brown Jr.'s Life's Little Instruction Book(s). In his introduction to Volume II, he writes, "Life is a process. We are all works in progress--green tomatoes ripening on the windowsill of life.  As I experience more, learn more, and contemplate more, I often think of what use my discoveries might be to my son, Adam."

So, begins my journey of blogging, the discoveries that God has revealed to me. Psalm 23 in the Bible states that "His goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life." God's goodness and mercy, His unrelenting grace, can be seen in the everyday and the ordinary. My goal is to chronicle what He has shown me and what I have learned. As these words hit the page, may my heart say "thank-you"....for everything. I thank you for coming along on this journey with me. May the words and thoughts that follow bless you.

I discovered Ann Voskamp's book One Thousand Gifts a little over a year ago. It will revolutionize a life. It is a book about finding the blessings that are so abundant in our every day lives. A friend challenged her to find one thousand "blessings" and write them down. Yes, write them down. She challenges her readers to do the same. I smile as I look over the entries in my "Blessings" journal....giggling, recipe for my grandmother's hotdish, stoneware mugs, calculator, a kind nurse at the clinic, scrapbook sale, warm shower, encouraging words.....and the list goes on. I have jotted over 1,600 "blessings" for 2013, and I continue to write more. Contentment (simply being thankful for what we have) is so missing in our culture today. By simply stopping, breathing, and becoming aware of the blessings in our life, we start to become aware of the goodness and mercy that God has placed in our lives. I often wonder what would happen if, when we turned on the nightly news, we only heard about the good in the world?

The unthankful heart discovers no mercies....but let the thankful heart sweep through the day and, as the magnet finds the iron, so it will find, in every hour, some heavenly blessings. ~Henry Ward Beecher

I am learning to be thankful.....