BOUNTIFUL

Thou hast given so much to me,

Give one thing more, - a grateful heart;

Not thankful when it pleaseth me,

As if Thy blessings had spare days,

But such a heart whose pulse may be Thy praise.

 George Herbert

1593 - 1633

Bountiful. . . giving freely and generously; liberal; marked by abundance; plentiful; lavish; princely; munificent. The nature of the one who gives bountifully is loving, caring, giving, kind, sincere, and selfless. That description defies the root of human nature. But not God's. Our God is bountiful.

He pours into our lives and world liberal abundance.  He spiritually gives us everything we need to surge with growth in Jesus Christ.  And truly, God gave His only Son, Jesus Christ, God's most bountiful gift, freely to us.

So who can give legitimate argument to the goodness of God?  Who is so blind that God's handiwork is invisible or vague?  Who can stand against God's testimonies?  Who can deny His holiness?  Who is like our bountiful God?

No one can compare to Him!  He created the world and all life, and set eternity in order.  He framed creation with His lovingkindness, and He daily reveals His presence.  With each sunrise, God's voice announces His mercy.  With each sunset, our heavenly Father lovingly kisses the night with promise of tomorrow. 

Nature is a testimony of our Creator's sovereignty.  The beauty of the earth, the majesty of the heavens, the nobility of the eagle, the graceful stance of the deer, the sustenance of the seed, the yielding of bread from wheat and rye, the opening of the dogwood bloom in the spring, the closing of the evening primrose in the day, the fabric of DNA that gives form and distinction to our mortal bodies, and all other existence tell of God's glory!

Consider the breath of God.  His own breath is our channel of life.  The Hebrews referred to it as nâphach, meaning to inflate, blow hard, scatter, kindle.  God's breath makes us living souls, weak humans who must have the life of God within to kindle them and make them spiritually alive.  The "LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being" (Genesis 2:7).  God's own breath began human life.  Not just once in the beginning of creation, but later, too, with a new existence.

Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, breathed on his disciples so they would receive the Holy Spirit, our Comforter, our Compass, our Counselor.  Jesus "breathed on them and said, 'Receive the Holy Spirit'" (John 20:22).  In his commentary notes, Matthew Henry states that during creation, Almighty God gave life to man, which began the old world.  And that when our Savior breathed on his disciples, He signified new life for a new world.

God created breath as a channel for life, both physically and spiritually.

God created living mortal beings of flesh and blood and weakness to demonstrate His Almighty glory!

God created the splendor of the seas, the majesty of mountains, the terror of tides, and the complex abilities of human beings combined with the possibilities of His earth's sources to point to God's greatness and goodness.

The intricate complexities of life and every living thing and the order of the universe speaks.  Whispers.  Proclaims.  Declares.  SHOUTS the truth of His name. 

He is El Shaddai, The All-Powerful God.  He is Elohim, The Creator, our Master Designer.  He is The Everlasting God, El Olam, our Eternal God.  He is the only God!  He is the only One, true God!

And our loving Creator of our world and our lives is not a clockmaker, who designed, created, and wound just to watch His creation work.  NO!!!  Our God is the Ancient of Days, active in past, present, and future, and He is Yahweh Rohi, The LORD is my Shepherd, who gives daily bread, holy compassion, and loving leadership, and divine provision to those Whom He loves, His own.

Praise Him!  Remember His Name!  Call on Him!  Believe in His Word!  Don't be fearful of speaking His truth and proclaiming Him as God! 

Declare Thanksgiving, 2009 your time to give your God glory and praise and honor.  Friends, He is our Source of all things!  All thanks we have to give, whether for family, friends, finances, church, country, health, home, and so many other blessings, are from our heavenly Father, Who delights in pouring good into our lives!

As you prepare your Thanksgiving meal, as you gaze upon your family and friends, as you go to your place at the table, remember your Lord of mercy.  Keep His goodness before you, and let an attitude of praise reign in your heart.  In doing so, your Thanksgiving holiday will be mightily blessed and remain as a testimony in your life each day.  Letting praise reign is a seed of a mighty tree that will, if watered and fed, grow and show abundant fruit. 

One small seed of determined worship is a beginning.  One small seed of praise can be the beginning of a great harvest.  Praise is the planting of bounty.  Let the seed of thanksgiving rule your heart and mind.  May this thankful time be the start of a new season of worship in you!  Your life will be spiritually bountiful, abundant, plentiful, for the only, true bountiful One will live and reign in you as true thanksgiving for Him lives in your heart and flows from your lips.

Scripture is from the NIV Bible.

Definition from thefreedictionary.com.
All research is from e-sword resources.

God's Warp and Weft

"Life is a tapestry: We are the warp; angels, the weft; God, the weaver. Only the Weaver sees the whole design."

Eileen Elias Freeman

What a beauty it was! I eyed it at a scant distance. Lain on an old pine table, it inspired a sweet little corner at a cozy antique shop in Guntersville, Alabama. Unreservedly, I walked down the narrow aisle, never removing my gaze from its loveliness. As it then lay before me, I touched its graceful edges, brushed my fingers against the woven texture, and marvelled at the thought and skill that created such wonder and wove a tale of an elegant French maiden.

The tapestry was there for all eyes. Unfurled for all to see, to touch, to praise. A date declared its true antique quality. The skillful design and careful handiwork claimed its precious price. One too steep for my little cottage budget.

Moving on from the valuable piece, I continued my search for simpler things with painless prices. But I did not forget its beauty and rarity. The tapestry found a small spot in my heart for its elegant sense. My desire was not to buy, but to regard what I learned about costly treasures of art and artisans past. I hoped that it was destined to hang in a period home. Owned by one who would appreciate its worth and painful undertaking.

As precious as it was, the tapestry was only one among many costly items I saw that day. And as costly as those and many other worldly goods are, they are worthless when brightened by eternal light. How can they compare to nonmaterial life? The beauty of our Artist and His tapestries. Real life and lives. Creation unseen to human vision. Authentic authenticity. What really matters.

God's craftsmanship in our lives appoints the real priceless. His work in us threads and toils. We are privileged to be His weft and warp. We live in rich, unmerited favor, and God is surely weaving us together. We are, each one, becoming His glorious tapestry, a work of worship, a testimony of Christ's triumph, God's own hands carefully crafting, taking strand after strand, placing them in His divine loom, putting all together, knowing presently the finished work that will be.

Linen, cotton, wool, silk, gold, and silver. All are beautiful. All are needed. All are treasured. All are esteemed. All are costly. Not one strand should be lost or debased. For the completed creation will in time acclaim the artistry and glory of its Creator.

When complete, what joy the creation brings to its Artist! God, through careful, meticulous work on His divine loom, reveals threads of grace, weaves expressed love, portrays His power, yields colorful compassion, teaches the worth of peace and patience, illustrates unceasing prayer, exhorts all who wonder at its interlocking pieces of pain, speaks to all who hear its hidden themes, brings to reverence all who marvel at the miracle.

Like tapestries of old, we are each a symbol of royalty in our world. When others view us, they view the work of our King. Humanity looks for remarkable details. They expect excellent rapport. And our worldly culture sees us as peculiar creations. Sometimes they look for beauty. Oft times they look for fault. Tend to search for forgery. Crave to find false. And those critics turn from us grieved when pricked by our purity, the real within us.

And that real within us, like tapestries from history, serve well. Centuries ago, those aristocratic beauties were commonly removed from castle walls, and with ease, moved from place to place as their masters desired. They were used for comfort in cold, for insulation, for solitude, for banners of battles, for illustration of God's word, and, in time, some were sadly burned for their costly gold and silver threads.

Our Master Weaver considers all threads costly. His work is perfect. His work is tireless. His work is love. Going on and on, He weaves, assumes the warp-work, customizes His art, like the ancient earthly craftsman who invested more than a month in just one square yard of his tapestry. Day, weeks, months, years passed before the weaver's glorious task was completed. And when done, the back of said work was hardly varied from the front. The seen mastery was a mere reflection of the unseen toil of its artisan.

Dear friends, "we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them (Ephesians2:10). You are his art. You were created for His glory. You were ordained to walk God's way. And, the Greek meaning of key words in this passage allow us even deeper revelation of God's handiwork. To fully see yourself, the miraculous, God's tapestry, notice the mighty meanings.

• Workmanship = poiema = fabric; a design made by an artisan; God is the master designer

• Created = ktizo = to form from pre-existent matter or out of nothing; to form spiritually

• Good = agathos = excellent, distinguished, upright, happy, honorable

• Works = ergon = labor, performance; the work Jesus was sent to fulfill on earth

• Prepared Beforehand = proetoimazo = used only twice in the NT, refers to glory and good

• Walk = peripateo = to tread all around; be occupied with

What illumination! Dear friends, we are His chosen fabric. You have been designed completely by Him, who is the Great Artisan. Our heavenly Father has taken us, each one, with all the nothingness and all the somethings in our lives, to spiritually form us according to His desire to make us a most distinguished work. As he crafts us and works with our abilities and weaknesses, the work of Christ is accomplished through us. And this work of Christ that we do, which He determined in prehistory, is done for your good, the good of others, and the glory of God.

As God's tapestry, you are so important! Grasp the reality of His creative work in your life! Everywhere you go, whatever you do, find joy in being His masterpiece, humbly thank God for His labor of love in you, and glory in Christ's cross, which renders you the honor of His skillful hand.

Scripture is from NKJV

Greek Word Study is from The Complete Word Study Dictionary, New Testament, Zondervan Publishing

I was very humbled and sweetly surprised to receive this award from Lidj, of Crown of Beauty. Lidj is filled with such love and passion for the Lord, and her love for others is evident through her writing and precious smile. Please visit her at http://www.mla-crownofglory.blogspot.com/.
You will be uplifted and inspired by her creativity and sensitivity, and you will find joy in spending time perusing her post and learning of her life.

The rules that go with this award require listing 7 things you love that show your creativity, then link back to the person who gave you the award, and pass it along to 7 other bloggers.

Here are my 7 loves . . .

I love practicing the presence of God. What a daily challenge it is to find Him in all and to keep a heart of prayer. It is truly a lifetime task, but without it, I am empty and life is vain.

I love spending time with my family and finding ways to make them happy and comfortable. Spending time with my husband, talking with my sons, and playing with my grandchildren are the highlights of my life. Being present for them all is very important to me. If I can entertain my grandchildren, bake a cake, or help my husband with church tasks, I find such joy!

I love working in my church, attending services, and worshiping with God's people.

I love writing and hope and pray to do so with a heart for God.

I love playing the piano and hope and pray to do so through the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

I love reading, allowing the wisdom and words of the scriptures and books to sink into my heart, flood my mind, and transform my life. The symbolism and beauty of literature is a tool in the hands of the Lord when read through His eyes.

I love making my cottage house a home. It's fun to find vintage treasures at thrift stores and out-of-the-way places. I love being inspired by decorating books and magazines; then, taking that inspiration, along with books, lace, fabric pieces, and old things and renewing a room with a little romance.

Now, I would like to pass the Kreativ Blogger award along. Choosing particular bloggers is quite a task for me, as I love everyone so much and think you are all very deserving! Listed below are a few among many of my deserving, inspiring friends.

Jennifer at http://www.quailandmanna.blogspot.com/
Jo at http://www.abritintn.blogspot.com/
Kathleen at http://www.sassygranny.blogspot.com/
Kim at http://www.thevictorianparlor.blogspot.com/
Lady Pamela at http://www.ladypamelascottage.blogspot.com/
Rebecca at http://www.rebecca-gatheryerosese.blogspot.com/
Sue at http://www.quiltmamasue.blogspot.com/

Please take some moments to visit them. You will find great inspiration from their beautiful blogs! God bless all!