“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
~ 1 Peter 2:9-10 (ESV emphasis mine)
Over the last couple of weeks I reflected about relationships…My relationship with my Lord and Savior, with family and friends. The one thing that became clear is that if you speak out, share your heart, be honest with each other, things can be resolved…
So this week, my focus is on relationships…
- Thank You Lord that I can share my heart with You. No matter what happens in my life, You always find a way to comfort me…
- I am thankful for the relationship I have with my beloved. Although we sometimes do not agree on all things, I can talk with him about everything. I am thankful that he listens to me and I have an ear for his concerns. I think that makes our marriage work…
- I am thankful that I have a good relationship with our son. Although we don’t see him often, we do talk on the phone often. I guess we did something right 😛 …
- I am thankful for the relationships I have with some gals across the country. Although I have not been on the ‘net’ the past couple of weeks too often, I know that I can count on them when I am in need…
- I am thankful for the relationship I have with my mom. Although 6,000 miles away, we have still a strong friendship…
- And I am thankful for the relationships that are not friendships, but that help me grow and stand firm in what I believe in. I think that our Lord puts some people in our lives to make us stronger – stronger in faith and reliance on Him (does that make sense?
What are you thankful for this week? Please do share with us. I want to thank all 113 women who participated last week – God is so AWESOME bringing us together here on the ‘net’. Just imagine all the people that are searching for hope and come across your blog. God is using you ladies to reach out to the hopeless 😛 …
Thank you for stopping by today…remember – YOU are HIS people – made holy through your relationship with Christ Jesus…
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Hi, Iris. Relationships are so important and I think such a wonderful gift from God! I’m so glad that He has blessed with such great relationships!
You are so right about the relationships with those we meet through the internet. I have found so much support online lately, and I have desperately needed it. I have told the Lord many times over the last week how thankful I am for my online friends. They are rare gems — priceless!
Praise God for relationships – for all those special people He brings into our lives.
Blessings,
Tammy
Thank you for your list of thankfulness. They are great reminders that HE sees everything and that everything matters to HIM.
I guess that is why HE guided us to blog!
Have a great weekend, Iris.
Ooh, relationships! That’s a good one! Thanks for hosting this and thanks for the reminder of how precious our various relationships are. God bless you and have a wonderful weekend!
I am very thankful for relationships. Bless you sweetie.
I love that in relationships, we can be both the giver and recipient of grace, be Jesus with skin on.
Iris,
I think relationships are very important. It is important to have people in our lives to share with; laugh with; cry with; and pray with (only to name a few). Thanks for sharing your heart.
Blessings!
Cheryl
Relationships is a wonderful theme. Thank you for having this wonderful time each week to set aside for thankfulness. Blessings to you.
I LOVE that you chose this! IT has amazed me all day long. I told my sister Aimee—God MUST be trying to tell me something….oh and I AM listening!
I love you girl! You mean so very much to me!
HUGS IRIS…and bless your RELATIONSHIPS! First of course the ONE that You glorified FIRST and then your hubby and son! May all the ‘net’ relationships be’
exactly that for YOU…a NET…when You may have a need, a request, or just
need for some to catch you from falling or loosing ground…may the NET catch you and keep YOU in HIS EVERLASTING RELATIONSHIP and with us, the Body of Christ!
Indeed, what a privilege this is and all the wonderful, gifted SISTAs in this NET!
It is awesome and so are you! Be uplifted by the numbers of TT and do not be
overwhelmed…take it in stride and just allow God to flow through TT blessing us
and others as we share! You are so right about RELATIONSHIPS and Giving Thanks!
I think my post relates to this…PLEASE BE~SURE to stop by my blog on FRIDAY!
It’s a special day and I’m inviting YOU! Come and share!
I am thankful for such wonderful reminders to be thankful. Reading them makes my mind go to those things in my life. Thanks!!
Iris, it is sooooo good to be back at TT! What an awesome way to praise God~ to reflect upon all that we are to be thankful for!! AND….relationships are such blessings from Him. Thanks for pointing our hearts in this direction. And, it was fun to post some new pics! God is sooooo good.
Love you , my friend! I am soooo thankful for YOU, Iris!
Blessings!
Thank the Lord for every kind of relationships in our lives, whether sweet as honey, or sometimes bitter as medicine, there is no wrong in HIS hand, he will make everything for good ! Praise him.
Iris,
Relationships was a perfect theme this week. It is what living is all about. Know this, I am so very thankful for our relationship of friendship, love and support. It is eternal. Hugs.
Hey Iris,
I sure missed you last week. Looks like God continues to bless this meme and there are more and more grateful hearts! Great theme. Relationships are so vital! I’m so grateful for all the wonderful people the Lord has blessed me with, especially all my blogging buddies!
Have a wonderful day?
What a great list of thanks. I most especially like the last one. Have a great Thursday
A lovely post. I too am thankful for relationships.
Remain blessed!
God bless you Iris and you are in my prayers!
Iris, I always write my TT posts ahead of time and then hope that we are on the same theme. Every week, without fail, we are and I am so thankful for that. You have a great ministry going on here. It is a true blessing to be a part of it. Thanks for sharing your great list and love for the Lord with all of us! Blessings to you.
Thank God for blessing the various relationships in your life. Truly these are great blessings from God. I am thankful to God too for blessing the various relationships in my life. I am especially thankful to God for you in hosting Thankful Thursday and enabling me to experience so much comfort and encouragement through the various Thankful Thursday posts. Truly it is a blessing to experience such friendships over the net! Praise God. Have a blessed day!
I am so thankful that you do this each week – it really does make me think about how and what I should be thankful for in my life!
God bless you, Iris,
~Chrissy
Iris, thanks again for hosting TT each week. Relationships is a great focus for the week.
thanks. your thankfulness is contagious. just count the number of participants last week… and i am one of them now. praise God for opportunities to publish praise and thanks items on the net. may God continue to bless our endeavors in praising Him because He inhabits the praises of His people. in everything, we give thanks! amen!
Wonderful list Iris! I look at some specific relationships today as well.
I love this week’s theme. Relationships are the core of living. And I’m thankful for this meme that helps me to focus on my blessings.
It has been awhile but I’m back and thankful! Happy Thursday to everyone!
I continue to be amazed at just how neat relationships built through blogging really is. It certainly has been an encouragement.
You are so right. Relationships are so important. Thank you for sharing.
I’ve had the blessing this week to strengthen relationships with folks at church while we work on our Vacation Bible School. It has been such a blessing and I’m so thankful that I’ve had more time with these wonderful folks!
Thanks, Iris, for hosting TT. Have a blessed day!
I’m thankful for YOU. Even if you’ve been busy with work and life, you always faithfully bring us Thankful thursday and we all need that. Thanks Iris!
Excellent post, Iris. Life is all about relationships. God wants to use relationships to bring us closer to Him, to change us into the image of His dear Son, to bless us and even to burn off some of the dross in our heart. I’m glad you get to talk to you son often. Yes you did something right! Blessings!!
I am thankful the the core relationship we have with some prayer warriors on the net. Praise God. I am thankful for you and I am thankful you give me the opportunity to pray for you. Blessings.
Iris, I can’t wait to post TT on my blog this morning. The very Scripture you posted from 2Peter is my theme verse on my blog and it is one of my favorites. I love it because we are a chosen people, separate, called out of darkenss, to do the work of the Lord. I”m thankful for this theme today. I have to go post now. Have a great rest of the week and weekend.
Relationships…I have some that I need to work on after reading your post.
Thanks for the encouragement and for hosting TT!
Thanks so much for hosting! I love this!
Thanks Irish for sharing your Thankful Heart to God…Mine is up also. TC
Relationships are certainly one of the most important parts of life – one of the most difficult sometimes, but also one of the biggest blessings. And our relationship with Christ IS the most important part of life. Thank you for your reminders and thank you for your encouraging words to all of us!
Blessings,
Nancy
It’s been awhile, and I’m regretting that I haven’t disciplined myself in gratitude…but…I’m back, and God is gracious!!!
What a great thing to thank God for – relationships that aren’t friendships. That makes so much sense. It’s kind of like my 2-year-old thanking God “…for our boo-boos, because they hurt.” I have no idea where she picked that up, but it’s a good reminder to thank God for EVERYTHING, not just the warm & fuzzy stuff.
Yes, let us always praise the Lord for all the precious relationships in each of our lives.
Yes, thank God for blessed relationships! I’ve posted my Thankful Thursday. Thanks for hosting this!
~Susan
Amen, Iris!! I don’t know where I’d be with out the awesome godly relationships I’ve been so richly blessed with in my life!! Thanks for sharing your heart, and as always, for hosting us this and every Thankful Thursday. God bless you, sweet friend!!
Iris,
Thanks you so much for hosting this for all of us.
What a great idea.
I love that it keeps me focused every Thursday.
I even have the ladies in my Bible Study doing this offline
God Bless you
Lovely thankful post. Be blessed.
This was very fun! I enjoyed thinking about my blessings and writing what I am thankful for today. I am also enjoying reading what others are thankful for. It is very refreshing to step back and reflect on our blessings. I will be back to participate next week!
Relationships are good! Thanks for sharing this with us all.
Grateful for my relationships too. Life would be drier than the desert without someone to share it with. Even in our loneliest hours, we always have Christ. So thankful for His presence day by day.
Thanks for hosting our growing group. I love it that so many are in this together. Pausing to say thanks.
Thank you, Iris.
Love,
Tiffany
I’m thankful that God doesn’t give up on OUR relationship. I’m going through a phase of recognizing pride in my life and dealing with it. For so long I didn’t see it. Now I recognize it as soon as it pops up it’s ugly little head.
The scary thing is that God hates pride. I’m glad He hasn’t given up on me but is patiently helping me. I’m thankful for the Holy Spirit Who guides us into all truth!!!
“Over the last couple of weeks I reflected about relationships…My relationship with my Lord and Savior, with family and friends. The one thing that became clear is that if you speak out, share your heart, be honest with each other, things can be resolved…”
Oh my goodness, girl!! My dad is in the hospital with pancreatitis…most likely caused by alcohol. The doctor said it today in front of the whole family and my grandmother (this could get rather long) but she started her usual “pharisee” attitude right in front of the doc. Well, I prayed before I went today that the Lord would provide an opportunity for me to “speak out, share my heart, and be honest” with my dad about our past and the fact that I don’t hold any grudges. I came to understand a few years ago that my dad has always done the best he knows how to do and that Jesus died for him just as much as me. Well, anyway, I just interuppted the fight and said that I thought we should pray and thank Jesus for my dad and the fact that he wasn’t chronically ill. I was able to lift him up and my family right in front of my grandmother and thank God that without Him we would all be guilty of sin and the “mistakes” in our lives and that none of us are without blame. I don’t know if my grandmother got the message, but it was powerful and the Holy Spirit came down and healed my family in a powerful way. My prodigal brother recently came home and he was there too. We were all crying and a great deal of healing took place. Praise God and thanks to Him for giving me the courage to combat satan today with prayer. It was AWESOME!! So your comment above just blew me away when I read it!! Talk about supernatural timing!!
Blessings
I just stumbled across your blog and I’ll be checking in again. Thanks for your uplifting thoughts!
Hi Iris! I have been away from this but I felt like participating today and counted my blessings. I loved your post especially the last part. It reminded me we may be one person but we may be the world to that one person.
WOW! I was late with my TT this week but when I got here you have really lots of bloggers to join!! How neat is that?? Thanks for a wonderful post again Iris. You always seem to have the right words. Happy TT!
Hi Iris!
I can so relate to your post…Oh, how thankful I am for the blessing of relationships! Like you, I also am VERY thankful for the relationship I have with my husband! The Lord has helped us so much in our marriage…A God-centered marriage is able to flourish!
See ya next week!
Love in Christ,
Janet
P.S. Hey everybody, come check out my post, called “Fount of Blessings” at:
http://dailyprovision.wordpress.com/2008/07/31/fount-of-blessings/
A great topic today! Just what I need focusing on! Thank you & have a lovely TT!
Thanks for starting us thinking! I realized I need to thank for the hard things. Blessings.
my list is short and brief..but really am thankful for what God has done to me this week 🙂
I really enjoyed your thoughts and reminders about our relationships with those we love most this week. I needed to be reminded that listening and understanding my fiance’s point of view is one of the things that helps bring us closer together!
Hi Iris – There is an award waiting for you at my blog. 😀
Iris,
You really hit home with me this week. I thank God for all the God given relationships he has ordained in my life! Have a blessed weekend in Christ Jesus.
Stacy
Thank you for the thankful Thursdays. My walk with God has been virtually nonexistent of late and I finding that there are multiple multiple ways He is pulling me back to Him — and you have been one of them with your attitude of gratitude. I don’t know if it will mean anything to you to receive it but it means an awful lot to me to give you an award. Thanks for being a part of how God is working His purpose in me.
Dear Lynn, Please stop by to pick a tiny Thank You from me to you. Be blessed.
I am thankful I have a moment to visit and say hello and I’ve missed talking to you. I hope that you are well… and all is well at work, etc. School is soon to start – can’t believe it’s August, already! Anyway – drop me a hello when you get a moment… just makes me smile to hear from you, even if it’s short… BTW, about the shooting that you mention… it was in Knoxville (3 hours awaY).
This is a beautiful post. I can see where we would need difficult people in our lives to help us grow. I don’t deal well with them though, I get too emotional and I am too old to cry in front of them. I’m speaking of the difficult instructor I’ve had with my mastery lessons on the new machine.
I’m so glad you have your Mother still and a good realationship with her.
Blessings,
Mama Bear
I haven’t done Thankful Thursday in a long time Iris, and it is such a joy to read yours. I agree – it is the people God has placed in our lives that greatly influence who we are. He uses others to do the work in our lives He wants done.
I think your relationship with your beloved and your son are very special indeed.
Hi Iris, Thanks again for hosting Thankful Thursday and encouraging us to count God’s blessings in our life. I am greatly encouraged by God’s goodness to each of us.
There is an award waiting for you on my blog 🙂
Take care and may God grant you a blessed weekends!
That was really beautiful. I was especially touched by your being thankful for those relationships that are not friendships. I think we don’t think often enough about how those are orchestrated by the hand of our Father. Thank you for reminding me of that.
🙂
Iris,
Isn’t is awesome how Thankful Thursday is growing. We are so blessed to have you host this every week.
Hope you had a great weekend.
Come visit me today, I have something for you!
Cheryl
I woke up at 8 o’clock this morning. i was very tired yesterday for having a dance show. I took a shower in a rush and wash my hair. I know that i have been clumsy lately because i have so many exercises to do. I mess my hair and my body.And before i realize it, i mess my study.
I take a couple of time to check my email and read several news about arts (you know, i love arts). I read several message across the world which is stated in every updated blog from all blogger friends. I sometimes add it with what i call “relaxing activity”. It is a short minutes playing game which sometimes could refresh my mind about anything ~but sometimes it makes me addicted to it~. i really enjoy my moment before suddenly Mr. Sexy sends me a message, “Honey, do not forget to do your thesis”.
aaarrrggghhhh…… Mr. Sexy, you ruin my perfect moment. 😀
This is not enough, my mom and my brother suddenly become very busy moving the plants. the are replacing the plants from upstairs to downstairs. They are very noisy putting the plants here and there. I should not let it just happen around me without doing nothing. I should help them. then i help them with that and i am sweaty now. hikzz..
But then i realize, this makes me alive. Mr. Sexy did not mean to disturb my perfect moment, he wants to create a new perfect moment for me instead. Well, i really should finished my study right? this is why he is really concern about it. I really thankful that he cares for me. He reminds me to finish it soon so i could do another activity, the one that i really want it right now. Working. I want to work but i must finished my study first. well, thank you Mr. Sexy, i really appreciate what you have done to me.
My family is also the other blessing i have today. It is good to redecorate our home together. Becoming sweaty together and laughing together. It is good to be at home with your family in togetherness. I really thankful that they are still here with me right now. This might be the moment i could not get when i have got married (because i must be very busy managing my own new home). i really thankful for my parents who always love me no matter who i am. i also thankful for my naughty brother ~although we sometimes fighting each other and disputing each other~ for always be there for me when I need him. I love them all.
I participate in your meme because i know there are so many things to be thankful for.
God is so good!