Can we be halfway through September already? We’ve had a little break in the temperatures, but it still feels very much like summer here. Yet some of the leaves have started falling already. And we have some overnight forecasts for next week in the fifties!
It’s good to pause from the busyness of life and appreciate the good things. We not only thank God for His blessings, but we prolong them by remembering them. Susanne hosts an opportunity to do that and share at Living to Tell the Story.
1. Grandparent’s Day. Last Sunday, Jason, Mittu, and Timothy had us over for a nice meal, cards, gifts, and games. We felt honored.
2. Gift cards. I had gotten a gift card for Amazon back at Christmas. I hadn’t entered it into my account yet because I wanted to wait til I was ready to buy something special. Otherwise, Amazon uses the gift card as the primary means of payment unless you remember to adjust your preferences at checkout. I was looking up a few odds and ends personal things this week and remembered the gift card—perfect!
3. Ribs. Jim had bought some babyback ribs on sale several weeks ago. There wasn’t quite enough for the whole family, but it seemed a lot for just two people. I saw them again in the freezer this week and decided to go ahead and make them in the crockpot. While looking up how long to cook them, I came across this recipe, which said to put them in the oven after taking them out of the crockpot. I used two different kinds of barbecue sauce (Sweet Baby Ray’s and Sticky Fingers Carolina Sweet) along with garlic powder, minced onion, seasoning salt, and Worcestershire sauce. They turned out nicely and even seemed better each day.
4. A word of encouragement.. I wrote a few weeks ago about the need to accept constructive criticism. But we also need encouragement sometimes to let us know we’re on the right path and to cheer our hearts.
5. A word in due season. I was feeling bad over a wrong attitude one night and the next morning. I had confessed it to the Lord and been forgiven (I John 1:9), but still felt lingering regret. Yesterday morning, I opened my Daily Light on the Daily Path to these and related verses:
I, even I, am he that comforteth you (Isa. 51:12)
Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust (Psalm 103:13-14).
Thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth (Psalm 86:15).
The Spirit … helpeth our infirmities (Romans 8:26).
What a balm for my heart! I felt so seen and loved. I’m thankful for God’s grace.
Stray Thoughts 
I love the Scriptures you posted. So vital for us to know the grace and mercy of our loving Father.
You are the only people i know who celebrate Grandparents day! that is just awesome. I used to send my parents cards with little notes from my daughters to my parents when they were alive but for some reason Dave’s folks don’t get into cards or holidays other than Thanksgiving of course (direct ancestors from the Mayflower)j. I think it’s wonderful that your grandson is honoring you on Grandparents day.
My husband would love those ribs!!
Happy Weekend!!
I am thankful for God’s Word. His messages soothes the heart and soul. I’m thankful for His grace, too. Have a blessed weekend! 🙂
Time with your family is so special! So nice you got to spend Grandparents’ day with your kids. Yay, to goodies from Amazon that are free!
I’m glad you got the Amazon gift card for a special purchase! A. can be weird about them … I wanted to buy some Vella points with a gift card. Turns out you can’t do that, which seems odd? Don’t you just love when a devotional is JUST what you needed to hear? A great blessing!
Those last two faves are both so important, especially knowing that God is our Father and loves us in that way.
What a sweet time with Jason, Mittu and Timothy! I love how they love and honor you both.
Have a wonderful and hopefully cooler weekend!
Oh, yes, that’s how I do my oven ribs, too. After they’ve been baking several hours, I take them off the bone, mixing with bbq sauce and putting the meat into a 9×11 (or bigger or smaller depending on quantity) and roast at higher temperature to caramelize the bbq sauce a bit.
So much grace in God’s word. I’m glad they came together to encourage you in time of need.
Thanks for a wonderful post! Feeling God’s love, grace and forgiveness is a great blessing. I hope you have a good weekend. See you again soon.
I’m glad you found comfort in the scriptures. And yes we do need encouragement as well as constructive criticism. How nice to celebrate Grandparents Day. Not sure it’s really a thing here – not one we celebrate anyway. Enjoy the rest of the weekend.
Beautiful, encouraging posts today!
I love to eat ribs and order than when I go out. We don’t buy pork because hubby can’t eat it. We see our grands on a regular basis and so it is not a big deal for us. There was a time that we gave cards for everything. I always remembered my parents for everything. The generation after us does not do that since they do everything by text message and social media. One of the downfalls of technology.
So thankful when a perfect scripture comes to us just when we need it. God cares about everything we are going through. Those ribs sound amazing and you’ve reminded me I have a pack in the freezer. I know what I’ll be eating this weekend. So sweet that you are celebrated as grandparents.