365 Days of Blessings - Day 4

365 Days of Blessings, Day 4
1. God's refining, fiery love. He passionately reshapes us to be beautiful, necessary people. We are all loved, and we are all needed.
2. The videos my husband captures, edits and produces for our daughters' dance studio - it's a blessing to see those routines later, especially when we see how much they've improved.
3. My daughters' love of all those "girlie" things I didn't like as a kid - nails, hair, clothes. I'm not sure where they got it from, but it's sweet to see them enjoying all of that.
4. Writing poetry that attempts to capture the images of the moment. It's fun to try.
5. The gift of language.
6. The happy, whole body wiggling, tail-wagging of our older dog, Lady, who still wants to play.
7. My Beagle's soulful eyes, even though he's rarely as innocent as he looks.
8. My cat's listening face, ears perked up, eyes open wide, expecting conversation and attention. (we have a family of people who talk to our animals, so the animals attempt to talk back)
9. The sound of my kids putting away the dishes - it's such a blessing to have someone else do it. ;-)
10. Butter. (even though we have it in limited quantities due to some dairy issues, we still love it)

"This third I will bring into the fire;
I will refine them like silver
and test them like gold.
They will call on my name
and I will answer them; I will say,
'They are my people,' and they will say,
'The Lord is our God.'"
Zechariah 13:9

"So I went down to the potter's house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him." Jeremiah 18:3-4

"Jeremiah had seen potters at work all his life, but today he saw something else - he saw God at work making a people for his glory. A people of God. Persons created in the image of God. Necessary but not only necessary - each one also beautiful. And beautiful but not only beautiful - each one also necessary." - Eugene H. Peterson, RUN WITH THE HORSES, p. 78