Simple Blessings

A friend of mine once told me a story about her son who was about to celebrate his 6th birthday. They were in the store looking for plates and napkins, and they were having some trouble picking a theme. She was holding up all the boy options (Thomas the train, super heroes, etc.), but he kept pointing to the girl options (pinks and purples abounding) with the explanation that he knew his little sister would like those. My friend said to him, "But son, this is a party for you. Which one do you want?" And he responded with something to the effect of, "I want to pick one that she'll like, Mom! Let me bless her!"

This saying had taken a place in this little guy's heart because his dad says it to him often when giving to him. And what a beautiful way to sum up our gracious heavenly Father's love towards us- "Let me bless you!" Yet, my heart often feels guilty for enjoying grace and I hear the whisper of "You don't deserve any of this!" Jesus is helping me courageously yell back, "I know that! But God wants to bless me anyway! He's that lovely!"

As I recover from the school year, I'm finding myself enjoying lots of little blessings. Here's a snapshot of a few of them:

A pretty bowl of colorful fruit that makes me smile whenever I walk into my kitchen.

Going swimming and having lunch down by the pool

Sweet stories from Adventure Week: a little 6-year-old saying to the actor telling the story of Joseph, "You are adorable!" And another little friend turning to her neighbor during story time and saying, "God's in every story!" So true!

Turning leftover morning coffee into this yummy treat-

And verse 2 from the book of Jude-

Mercy, peace, and love be yours in abundance!

Let him bless you!