Gifts Counted

I decided to make my list of gift counting public.  Well, at least the gifts that are appropriate to share publicly.

If you are visiting my blog for the first time and have no idea what I'm talking about, START HERE. 

I have been wading deeper in to the water of gratitude since me dear friend, Casey, sent me Ann's book.  Since that moment last week however, the counting looks different, it feels different.  With  every gift sought and found and numbered, the gratitude is pounded deeper and deeper in to this broken, weary heart.  I am looking, seeking, hungry for finding the gifts and joy in ALL things and at all times.

And I'm finding it!  This girl, that gets it wrong more than she gets it right, is finding joy.... joy in ALL things.  Joy in careless words whispered against her because she knows her worth is not measured by other people's commentaries.  Joy in paying bills - no matter how late - because she is working her jewelry business consistently finally.  Joy in THIS house... this messy, small, looks like a dorm room house.... because THIS house is where she, her family and her friends share life together.

Are you counting your gifts?  Are you looking for them?  Are you numbering them?

It's not too late to join us on this #Newjoydare scavenger hunt for gifts.  If you clicked on the link to my previous post - it will tell you how to get on board.  If you didn't, here's another chance : CLICK HERE.

If you would rather do it privately - I respect that completely.  I would love to hear from you though.  Is counting gifts changing your heart?


GIFT COUNTING: TAKE 2     #Newjoydare

1. Catching the fever for counting gifts. The depth of my gratitude increases the height of my joy. 
2. Releasing the expectations of others. Acknowledging that I can only control and accept responsibility for how I treat others': not how they receive it or how they respond to it. 
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5. Birthday blessings from fantastic friends: several cards, free hair cut and color, three lunches, one dinner and an assortment of darling gifts.  
6. Inspiring lunch conversations with an inspiring friend about taking action to impact the violence in our community and love on some teenagers that really need it. 
7. Friends that show up to do life with me. 
8. This kid
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10. The journey.  I will always be mid-way.  Of this, I am sure.  I'm closer than I was, but not yet where I want to be. 
11. New job for a friend recently unemployed.
12. Baby made it through surgery and is recovering well 
13. Discipline to act kindly no matter how I feel. 
14. Giggling and laughter in the morning - extreme rarity in this house of morning-loathers.
15. Up front parking spot at school when running late. 
16. Amazing evening of learning and leadership with my Premier family.
17. Premier, in general, is seriously possible that this company is this good?  YES it is!   
18. There is always lots of laughing when this group gets together. 
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20. Friendships that can be loving and honest at the same time. 
21. Husband and son giggling over the silliest things. 
22. Husbands that take the trash to the curb on seriously cold mornings. 
23. Husband took a half day off of work to help me clean. 
24. Encouraging phone call from a friend confirming potential employment in a job I would LOVE to have. 
25. A friend that made all the goodies for my sample sale. 
26. Walked three times this week. 
27. Fall. Almost everything about fall feels like a gift. 
28. I always enjoy our Bible Study Fridays, but being able to watch this sweet face grow up on those Fridays is among one of my favorite gifts. 
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30. Discussion at small group reminding me to pursue my idea of what a simple life looks like, because chaos can clog the channels of God's love and mercy. 
31. Much needed play date for both Royce and I. 
32. An entire Friday evening,  alone, in bed.  I know- I'm a dork- but I needed to be still; physically and spiritually.  
33. Three mile walk/run on a gorgeous fall morning in my neighborhood. 
34. The privilege of praying for a friend that is 'showing up' for a pretty intimidating event this weekend. 
35. Offer of a friend to help me 'face my piles.' 
36. Yummiest 270 calorie salad I've ever eaten! 
37. Gifts re-read.  #joydare: One Thousand Gifts; Ann Voskamp
38. Gifts re-read.  #joydare: Hand, Hand, Finger Thumb; Dr Seuss
39. Gifts re-read.  #joydare  My Jesus Calling Devotional - I re-read it almost every day. :)
40. Ugly beautiful: #joydare  A year + unemployed, no more unemployment benefits.  It hasn't been easy. I am SO thankful for this season though.  This season has taught me how to live more fully in THIS moment. It has taught me how to trust God and to depend on Him SO much more.  It has taught me that giving thanks is the channel to true joy and happiness, not changed circumstances.  Oh how I desperately wanted it to be more about my circumstances and not about change I needed to make. 
41. Ugly Beautiful #joydare:  THIS house!  This house that used to make me crazy because it is drafty and small and set up poorly for family living.  This house that I purchased too quickly without considering other options.  Had I not, and opted for a slightly more expensive house, I'm sure I would be in forclosure by now.  Instead, I'm far warmer and much more comfortable than we would be at the rescue mission.  That is the truth.
42. Ugly Beautiful #joydare:  Addiction.  Much of this story I will keep private, but as much hurt and fear and anger addiction has imposed on me and my family, it has also opened the opportunities to refine my character to love more and to be open to those that need to be loved because they have been impacted by addiction.
43. Momastery blog. Seriously.
44. I woke up the morning this picture was taken full of ugly.  It was a rough night. Followed by a less than supportive morning from my husband.  I was exhausted.  I did NOT want to count to gifts.  I wanted someone else to grow up and 'be the change' for once.  In the middle of my temper tantrum that morning, this girl realized I needed help.  Not so much with potatoes, but with perspective.  We laughed. We peeled potatoes.  I started counting gifts again.
45. 

To continue to follow my Gift Counting list go HERE.  This formatting is  trying to take the joy out of sharing my gift counting experience - and that is just NOT okay with me :)  I will just do it by month :)  

1. These girls. My daughter and my friend's daughter building a friendship of their own at middle school leadership camp.
   
   
   
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It's true - God is merely waiting to for me to turn to Him instead of focusing on the things that are tearing me apart.











3. This sermon - such a huge reminder that our behavior can vandalize our relationship with God and with others. 

To continue to follow my Gift Counting list go HERE.  This formatting is  trying to take the joy out of sharing my gift counting experience - and that is just NOT okay with me :)  I will just do it by month :) 

#Newjoydare

I am in hour number 3 of day number 3 in this 38th year of life.......and I just had the most amazing moment. The most amazing moment just happened in this house. This house that I've complained about for 5 years. This house that is puke yellow from the street.  This house that is dull beige (at best) from inside.  This house that gets overcome with piles quickly because there is no room to create "Pinterest-ingly" amazing spaces of organization.  Yes, this house just offered a game changing moment for me!!!

I have confessed before that I am a slower learner than most, and I am.  Most times, I consider that a flaw, a short coming, a disability of sorts.  Today, though, today my disability was a gift.  My slower-than-most learning level led to a heart-bursting realization. 

If you have read my blog before, you have seen a glimpse in to the challenge and heart ache of the previous few years.  I've offered glimpses in to some of the moments I've gotten it excruciatingly wrong, and there are many more, many worse, that I haven't shared.  I've also offered glimpses in to some of my 'pirated' inspiration that has kept me reaching toward to the person I want to be. 

This morning, in this house, there was a collision of inspirational concepts that have,until today,  remained parallel.  How did I miss this? 

1.  Romans 8:28 -ALL things work together for good for those that love the Lord and called according to His purpose.  

and

2.  Ephesians 5:20 - At ALL times and for ALL things give thanks in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father.  

Here's what led to my morning moment: 

I have been really overwhelmed lately   My Crohn's disease is acting up - which means I don't feel well, which means I am not sleeping well, which means I am grumpier than usual and more frustrated than I should be. It is not easy to keep up with the to-do list of 1000 things a day when I am feeling 100%, let alone less than 100%.  The overwhelmed-ness accumulates, the increasing degree to which I'm behind on necessary tasks gains momentum, and historically I would run and hide until I 'felt' better. (and for those of you that know me personally, you know this is only one example because it is appropriate for sharing on a blog)

Yesterday, I stopped waiting until I felt better and went head-to-head with my list.  It was dreadful. There were 99 items on that list when I was stopped.  Making that list, however, made it easier and more efficient to accomplish some necessary tasks.  I was able to cross at least 10 tasks off the list instead of allowing them to remain and continue clogging my brain. 

Then, I made a plan to cross off another 10 today.  And with each moment I felt a bit better.

This morning, in this house, I woke up feeling rested for the first time in a long time.  Nothing had changed, really.  My house wasn't suddenly everything I wanted it to be.  My family hadn't miraculously shown up as elves in the night and finished my to -do list of 93 things (because, of course, some were added between finishing yesterday and beginning today). 

But I felt different.  I felt better.  

Then, in my devotional this morning, I saw that scripture again, about giving thanks at ALL times for ALL things; even to do lists 99 items long? So,  I gave thanks for the determination to go head-to-head with a to-do list 99 items long, even though I didn't feel well.  And I gave thanks for waking up feeling rested.  

Almost instantly, I felt my day heading toward hope and determination instead of overwhelm-ed-ness and anxiety. It was the giving thanks for an 'ALL' things to do list that changed my direction.

So here's the thing..... it occurred to me that I have been counting my gifts wrong.   I let that trendy Facebook saying influence my interpretation of that scripture.  You know..... 'what if you woke up tomorrow with only the things you thanked God for today.'  

I let that phrase shape my scavenger hunt for gifts.  I don't think I am a bad person for that.  It actually pushed me to consider gratitude for some things and for some people that I would not have otherwise.  But...... that's not what that scripture says though.... right?  We are to give thinks for ALL things at ALL times.  Even for the things we would rather wake up tomorrow without.  

When we're hurting and for the things that make us hurt, we are to give thanks. When we are sad and for the things that make us sad, we are to give thanks.  When we feel overwhelmed and for the things that overwhelm us, we are to give thanks.  That changed things a bit for me. 

As if that wasn't enough to meditate on today, when I took our dog Olliver out this morning - I decided to check my email.  I had an email from Max Lucado.  I get them daily - but I rarely read them.  Today I did. 

I was still in this moment of savoring the realization that it really IS in giving thanks for ALL things that unclogs the channels of joy.... and I saw a reminder of Romans 8:28, God works ALL things together for good for those love the Lord and called according to His purpose.  I have seen the faithfulness of this promise through out my entire life.  I cling to it, but honestly, I question the ALL things part more than I care to admit.  Will He really work ALL things together for good? 

But....wait......what if it's in the giving thanks for ALL things that allows God to work ALL things together for good?  Perhaps we clog the channels of 'good' if we are not willing to be thankful first.  Could I have let go of the overwhelm-ed-ness and anxiety sooner if I had been willing to be thankful sooner? 

Let me be clear - I do NOT believe that God is a with-holding God.  I do not believe that He only works things together for good if we give thanks.  However, are we able to see and receive the 'good' through the blurred vision of ungratefulness and the clenched fists of worry? 

Perhaps not.  

I want to revisit my gift counting.  I want to do it differently.  I want to give thanks for ALL things.  Yes, even those things.  Those things that hurt.  Those things that provoke fear.  Those things that create embarrassment.  ALL things. 


Here's my challenge - for myself - and for you, if you'll join me.  Let's start our own joy dare.

You can find the details for the original joy dare, by Ann Voskamp here: Take the joy dare

If we're friends on facebook, you've seen my half-hearted attempts to keep up with these monthly scavenger hunts for gifts.  Today I am starting over.  Today I'm starting my list at 1. and I am getting all the way in.  I'm counting the gifts.  I will scavenger hunt for the beauty among the brutal. And I will document the gifts easily seen as blessings along the way.

Want to join me?  Do you dare to focus on gifts and reasons to give thanks every day?

You can do this however you like: privately or publicly will affect your joy in the same way.  I am going public.  I am hoping this will help with accountability and joy-spreading potential. I like to chronicle my gifts a couple different ways - on paper and on camera.  It makes a difference though to count them hammer in your gratitude with each number for each gift.

How soon can we each reach #1000gifts?  How desperate can we be for the joy found in living fully right where we are at?

If you have an Instagram, or Face Book account, you can hop on board the community of gift seekers originally created by Ann Voskamp in response to her book, One Thousand Gifts, a Dare to Live Fully Right Where You are by adding #joydare or #1000gifts to your photos or status updates.  You can also seek what others are counting as gifts by searching those hash tags.  It's fun to see what others are counting!  I love it!

I'm not stopping there though.  If you would like to join me in building our own community, add the hash tag from this blog title #newjoydare on your Instagram photos and Facebook updates or photos.  Right now, that hash tag will be exclusively ours!  How fun is that? All of the posts will be exclusively for our community of gift counters!!!!  I love that idea.

I will also be giving away a $100 Premier Designs gift certificate to one of you that participates after we get to 200 total hash tagged posts.  (not including mine)  Believe me though, that gift certificate will pale in comparison to the relative growth in the height of your joy to the depth of your gratitude.

A couple ways to keep up on the fun:

1.  Like my business page on Facebook- Jeweler Joanna Facebook Page  I will be posting daily challenges for the scavenger hunt of gifts here.  Please do not feel restricted by these ideas.  These are only to help gain momentum in the search.

2.  Follow me on Instagram- Joanna Instagram  I will be posting my camera captured gifts here.

If you don't use either of those social networking sites, you could also

3. add your gifts collection in comments on this blog.  Or any other blogs I compose about gift counting.... I'm sure there will be many.

4.  You could also tag me on Twitter, @jomommago,  but I'll be honest - I don't understand Twitter.  I really don't.  I will try to check it though for any of you that use it and want to be included in the drawing for the gift certificate.

Eeeeeeekkkkk!!!!!!!  I am SO excited to see gratitude take over my social networking life.

Don't forget - 200 total #newjoydare posts equals a $100 gift certificate for free jewelry to one of you!

Cheers!  Here's to making the brutal more beautiful; one thanks-giving moment at a time.

Love you all, Joanna