Recieving Gifts...

Taya and I both try to keep a bit of a journal to document what's been going on in our lives, what we have seen God doing around us, and different prayer requests. Putting pen to paper should be one of the simplest things to do, especially when all you're trying to write is what you see happening around you...but I'm constantly amazed at how easy it is to get bogged down and let days or months go by without even cracking open my journal. So lately I've decided to lower the bar a little bit. I looked around at my desk and saw post-it notes all over the place with "important things" written down on them - things that I want to remember or things that I should be looking out for. It dawned on me that maybe I should use my journal like I use my post-it notes. So that's what I've been doing lately: Post-it Note Journaling.

Here's a couple of my recent Post-It's:
2.26.07
"Everything good and perfect comes to us from God above...He never changes..." ~James 1:17
Everything, all things, GOOD things, perfect things, they are all gifts from God.

2.27.07
I can trust that the giver knows what's best for me because He's the inventor and the source of what is called "Agape Love." Agape love is a rational love-not swept up in emotions, but doing what's best for the other person. It's the kind of love that parents give to their kids- it's not always what you asked for, but it's always what you need. I've never heard a kid ask for a toothbrush, but a good parent buys one anyways and sees that it gets used because it's in the kid's best interest to have healthy teeth and it's in everyone else's best interest for him to have fresh breath. A sick kid never asks for medicine, but a good parent gives it to him anyway.

2.27.07 later
Every day God showers me with many gifts, good gifts, perfect gifts, sometimes He gives me gifts that I don't understand, sometimes He gives me something different than what I asked for, sometimes I don't even recognize that I've been given a gift until much later. But I can always trust that His gifts are the best for me- they're perfect.

Speaking of gifts, here's a video clip of Isaiah at Christmas. We spent an hour in Toys R Us looking for the perfect race car for him, but he got more enjoyment out of the bow on top.