100 Things

Okay, this is a challenge I made up. You HAVE to list 100 things you're thankful for! Post it on your blog! Yeah, it's hard and takes some time...but it's worth it! Please take up this challenge and keep it going!

100 Things

1. God's written word to us
2. That we have a loving Father who cares and listens to the prayers we whisper up to Him; things we talk to Him about that we want no one else to hear.
3. For family. The ones who brought us into the world and raised us; the real “childhood playmates” that we've grown up with all of our lives.
4. The absolutely glorious place I live at.
5. The rolling hills and rocky mountains. The cool air I breathe scented heavily with that wonderful, woodsy smell.
6. All of our annoyingly wonderful animals. The three horses that I never thought I'd have, the five cats that live in the lap of luxury, the goat that never seems to stop being hungry, the dog that guards our pasture, the 20 chickens that have their own, very interesting personalities, and the guinea pig in my room that squeals at me every time I walk in.
7. The seasons. Spring and her cool breezes, bringing life packaged in little green buds. The deep green of warm Summer days, the buzz of cicadas and singing of birds. Autumn and her cool, mist covered mornings; her colorful display of red and orange. Winter and her cold, icy days; her white blanket that she tosses over the ground.
8. The roof over my head and the four corners that keep me warm and sheltered.
9. A plentiful supply of food and fresh well water.
10. A garden to grow a large variety of vegetables, fresh and crisp. (And sometimes a bit nibbled by those “whacky whabbits”)!
11. The warm sun on my face and the fresh mountain air.
12. The cool, refreshing rains “in their due season”.
13. The warm, cozy bed I get to crawl into every night and bury myself under mounds of blankets, teddy bears, and hoodies.
14. That I've been blessed to be homeschooled, and am kept from the prison camps that call themselves “education centers”.
15. For my health, and lack of diseases and sicknesses.
16. For the strength in my body to run, jump, climb and walk; that I'm not disabled in any way. That I can type with my fingers and run full speed with my legs.
17. For the magical bean known as “coffee”.
18. For my own bedroom; a quiet place that I can go and think...the hatchery for my ideas, my thoughts, and my dreams. The little nest that cradles prayers and whispers. It doubles as my study, art studio, recording studio, sleeping quarters, play area, music studio, and lays the backdrop for my acting stage; it's where I and the characters in my mind can gather and chat over a cup of coffee.
19. For the church that I am blessed with, where I hear every Sunday God's Word expounded.
20. For my church family, brothers and sisters in Christ. I've grown up with them for 7 years now. They are dear to me, and though we have our ups and downs, I always remember that we are always close in Christ.
21. For the amazing, breath-taking gift of music. It will overflow your heart with feelings; make you feel warm inside, or make you want to cry. As someone once said, “Music is emotion that you can hear. It will make you smile or make you cry. Music is very powerful...that's why I love it.”
22. For my Best Friend. The girl I grow with day by day. That God would bless me with such a precious gift. There is no jewel as special or as priceless as a true friend.
23. For the art of photography; for the split second you snap the shutter, and freeze a frame of time, capturing it forever.
24. For the song in my heart. Sometimes the lyrics are choppy, and sometimes very clear. Sometimes they make me cry, and sometimes they make me laugh until I cry.
25. For all of life, a story unfolded day by day. The pages may have huge blots of ink spilled on them, some may even be torn and wrinkled; but the majority are smooth, written everyday. Pressed carefully together to keep them straight. This story of life has the most thrilling moments, the deepest secrets, and the most interesting characters that could ever be woven into a plot.
26. For the camera that I have...my weapon of photography.
27. For my love of drawing that the Lord blessed me with. For the gentle, long strokes of a pencil against paper.
28. For the art of writing; the sound of the pen scratching the paper.
29. That I am blessed to be bestowed with the gift of hearing. A world without sound? I'm glad that I can hear the voices of my friends, the laughter of the ones I love. The epic notes of music, the rustling of the breeze through the trees. I can hear the people that communicate with me, speaking to me, and I can communicate back with them.
30. For such a diversity in language, race and culture on the earth. That no two people are alike.
31. The promise that He gave that in the end, no matter what happens, the whole world will be subject to Him. That none of His sheep will ever be lost, and that He will bring those to Him that He has called, no matter how lost they seem now.
32. For the night sky, studded with His diamonds and crystals against a blue velvet blanket. For the moon that shines down through the trees.
33. For the bright little flowers that peek through the soil in Spring, catching a glimpse of the sun above them.
34. For laughter. If I couldn't laugh, I couldn't live.
35. For tears, the salty drops of liquid that run down my face when I am sad. Tears often hurt, but they remind us that He collects them all in a bottle.
36. For smiles and grins. What a way to show how we are feeling....
37. For the variety of clothes that I have to mix, match, and pair.
38. For the technology we have have to further communication with those far away, to be able to post our thoughts so that hundreds can see.
39. For my English ancestors who came over here so long ago, and unknown to them, gave me a chance to live such an amazing life in the mountains of North Carolina.
40. For thoughts. The river that will either subside into a trickling stream, or rage into a current that sweeps you away.
41. That I'm a girl with emotions that often spill over the rim of my very full heart—that I'm as dramatic as I am.
42. For my future husband, where ever he's at and whatever he's doing—that one day, we will meet face to face.
43. For emotions that are constantly in motion. That my mind is never quiet; not even in sleep.
44. For dreams. The strange movies that have the oddest of plot lines, the most terrifying horror themes, the most romantic songs, the most epic dramas and heartwrenching actors. They never leave us alone, but come back to tell us a new tale every night. When the lights dim, the show begins.
45. For those I meet, and those that I only know about. For all of the people in my life and in my head.
46. For my fuzzy red socks. :)
47. For sleep. Wonderful sleep. The time your body rests and your mind gets a work out in your dreams.
48. For work. That I can use my hands to help others and care.
49. For babies. Those precious, beautiful gifts from God that we are commanded to bring forth, another soul added to eternity.
50. For motherhood, the highest calling. The art a woman has to comfort a child, to hold and caress it. The warmth of hugging a child to your chest and holding its small hand. For the dirty work a mother has to do, refining her to even a better woman. The tears she wipes away, the smiles she's rewarded with afterwards.
51. For guys. Stronger than us, our protectors and providers. First our fathers, then that special man that you give your hand to. He takes it in his strong one, and you begin a new life together, willing and ready to raise children for His glory, and to, family by family, conquer the world. The one man you will give your heart to and share your first kiss with will be with you as you walk down life's road. There will be trials and arguments...but do you sacrifice all for those?
52. That I'm made the way I am to conceive and bear children, to nourish them and help them to grow, to take their hand and guide them.
53. That I'm able to read and enter another world; to read the words of great men and what they have to say; to be able to remember those words and treasure them, those stories and tell them to others.
54. For photos...the frames that take us back to a time long ago.
55. For a warm shower every morning, the hot water that runs down my back waking me up and cleansing me.
56. For the keyboard that sits in my room, allowing me to pour out my emotions on it through its keys and sounds, making new tunes and practicing old ones.
57. For the love I share with others in so many different things, that I can giggle with them and tell many stories...for the kindred spirits around me.
58. For the wind. The flowing air that brushes the trees and kisses your face, whispering secrets to you that only your thoughts can read.
59. For the kitchen. What a place to work, learn, and use your hands. To sing songs to yourself as you wash the dishes, scrubbing away in sudsy water.
60. For the magic of expressing your thoughts in writing, where characters come to life and their voices sound right next to your ear.
61. For the quiet time I spend with God on beautiful Spring days as I walk down the road, His Creation all around me.
62. For the walks I get to take during the early Spring and on through the Fall, exercising not only my body, but my mind.
63. For the sky, a mural to display God's art. He's an artist, and the sky shows His brush strokes. There are no blemishes...only perfection.
64. For all of the animals, tame and wild, that we get to see around us.
65. For horses, one of the most beautiful and graceful pieces of His art.
66. For the voice of my friend, always there to answer when I call her.
67. That I'm blessed with good sight, and the gift to see everything around me in brilliant color. That everything is not in black and white, but in every shade of color you could imagine.
68. For the habits and characteristics I have that make up who I am; for my own personal identification and name, unique only to me.
69. For touch. Feeling a cold cup in your hand, or the warmness of another's skin.
70. That I've been raised the way I have, and that, Lord willing, I still have a long life ahead of me.
71. For the nicker of horses and the clucking of chickens, that I can hear these things.
72. For the joy shared between kindred spirits, the walks we take together, be it down the road next to my house, around the flower gardens at Callaway in Georgia, or down a sidewalk, hand in hand.
73. For the giggles I've shared and have been shared with; the moments where you try to suppress your laughter, but there's no way it's happening.
74. That God gave me a heart to want to help others as much as I can.
75. That I'm never alone, no matter what happens.
76. That I have a Guardian Angel that is always there by my side. He is strong and has been charged by God to protect me, and he stands guard day and night. He will not leave my side.
77. For such a variety in landscape and views all over the world, and though I may never actually see them with my own eyes, I can see them in pictures.
78. For the different measures of love we are gifted with for different people, yet all the same, we still love them. There's still a place in our hearts for them, and only those special people, even if we've only met briefly, are forever there. Even if you never, ever see them again, and you met for two minutes, or maybe you've only seen them, and will never meet, they've left an impression on you that won't go away, and in all this vast world, somehow, you've seen or met that person out of millions.
79. For the art of cooking and preparing something delicious to eat. For the plants, trees and animals that God gave us as food, to nourish our bodies on.
80. For the music that God tuned in the trees to serenade us as we live life, and the songs He put into the mouths of birds to sing to us.
81. For time, though it may go fast. That the clock will always go on as ever.
82. For the gorgeous piece of music “Reverie” by Claude Debussy, that almost perfectly tells my state of mind when I am thoughtful.
83. For the art of writing letters to your friends. You can't always keep e-mails, but you can forever cherish your friend's unique handwriting and what they had to say.
84. For the days and nights that go on forever, the changing of the seasons and the months, on through the years.
85. For the world I live in, even though things look dark at this time. One day, it will all be under His subjection, ruled by His perfect hand.
86. For my curiosity and the things I have yet to learn.
87. That I can hold conversations with myself, out loud and in my head.
88. That life is what it is to me, and that no one else on the face of the planet has this one special lot that's been given to me.
89. That I've been given the gift of loving to decorate and organize, to balance out a room and make it look nice.
90. That there's only 10 more of these to go. =)
91. For the amazing art of cinematography, capturing the movement of a subject in so many different ways, you are there, you are seeing it.
92. For the videos that I have of my family, friends, and the places I go. That they are forever captured through film.
93. That God always proves Himself in the end, no matter how much man tries to blotch it and get rid of the inescapable fact that there is a God.
94. That I was born when I was and where I was. That God placed me in this age and time for a reason, and that my life is NOT meaningless.
95. For language and communication.
96. For His amazing love for me.
97. That I know, when I die, I will be with Him in glory, and will never again face fear or pain.
98. That “real gold fears no fire”, and I am day by day refined in His furnace.
99. That I am saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone
100. That I'm me.