“Everything is a grace
because everything is God’s gift.
Whatever be the character of life
or its unexpected events
– to the heart that loves,
all is well.”
– St. Therese of Lisieux.

Everything. . . everything is grace! Because everything is God’s gift – how that truth goes straight to my heart. Big or small, even the hard and easy. God makes it grace even when it doesn’t seem like grace.

The flowers with the fading petals, when loved, are grace.

Aging, recovery from spinal fusion, the willingness to keep trying despite physical gracelessness, and in the trying, overcoming – that is grace. Those who kept encouraging – that, my friends, is grace and love.

An early morning adventure with rambunctious boys playing in a just-right-sized waterfall pool. . . that’s grace, too.

A pancake charcuterie for a yard-full of celebration. . . that’s grace.

and celebrating a new life coming. . .

a chess match on a morning with Muddy (my grandma name), maybe a game of Kings on the Corner, a cuppa and a not-so-hot chocolate

or a donut shop visit. . .

. . . it’s all grace. . . from the big stuff to little stuff like grilled cheese for hungry boys summering during the day at my house.

The quiet during nap time, moments with a cuppa and a good book, conversations around the kitchen counter, my husband’s voice, the unabashed birds waking us with their songs, every pair of feet that cross the threshold, or find a chair on the porch. . ., and my grown boys asking me to make them coffee because “It’s just that much better when you make it”. . . that’s grace. . .

. . .even the soul-thorns: the heart bruises, the disappointments, the little foxes that tear at the vine of myself, the insecurities, the important things I cannot fix, even those. . . even those are grace. . .. The weariness that can’t catch all the minutes in a day that leaves me feeling like a farmer watching the wind carry seed away before it reaches the ground and is helpless to stop it. . . that’s grace, too. Maybe those hold the most important graces of all. . .

Would our hearts love well if we didn’t know the pinches, pricks, and tears of suffering? Would we reach for the little graces without experiencing life’s slings and arrows? Would we care to know God so well without the soul-thorns? Yes, even this is grace.

It’s all grace. . . everything holds a gift from God within. . . everything. Our meager attempts to love God and love with His kind of love – like touching a hidden spring that opens a box, revealing a treasure. . . a treasure called grace that gives peace, allows joy beyond circumstance, heals, forgives, gentles a heart, allows hope to bloom, teaches us how to live in the wait of a prayer sent out, reveals beauty in dying flowers.

What grace are you gathering as you love this week? How is it making all well in your life outside Eden?

“”Everything is a grace
because everything is God’s gift.
Whatever be the character of life
or its unexpected events
– to the heart that loves,
all is well.”
– St. Therese of Lisieux.

Remember Me Monday: #100 & Link-up

“I’ll make a list of God’s gracious dealings,
    all the things God has done that need praising,
All the generous bounties of God,
    his great goodness to the family of Israel—
Compassion lavished,
.    love extravagant.”
~ Isaiah 63:7, The Message

In the Old Testament, God repeatedly, quietly and loudly, tells his children, “You have forgotten me!”  (Jeremiah 3:32, Ezekiel 22:12, to name a few). It’s a heart cry from a father to a child who has forgotten all the love, all the saving, helping, little and big blessings – and it leaves me stunned when I realize our Father, the creator of the universe, who knows things I cannot begin to fathom, who authors storylines that leave me amazed, delights in all of us so much, He cries out, “Remember Me.”

While every day is a Remember God Day, I am inviting you to join me on Monday mornings to come by and remember what God has done for you, for your family. Maybe God sent a cardinal darting out in front of you, as if to tell you, “I’m here,” or broke a child’s fever after you laid it all down at His feet in a 2 a.m. bedside vigil. Maybe He stood with you in the wait of a prayer sent out, or brought someone you loved to Christ. Maybe He healed your broken heart, gave your courage, or you gave Him your dreams as a love offering only to have Him give them back in an unimaginable way. Maybe God helped you survive to bedtime after a crazy Monday, or forgive yourself for missing it with your kiddos –– Whatever it is, let’s Remember Him. . . in a “Remember Me Monday” love letter.

“My mouth will tell of your righteousness,
Of your salvation all the day long,
Though I know not its measure.
I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, O Sovereign Lord”
~ Psalm 71:15-16.

Let us delight in Him by telling the  stories of what He’s done!  If you wrote a blog post remembering what He’s done for you, join the linky. If you didn’t but still want to praise Him for what He’s done – write it in the comment section. Then visit a comment before or after yours! One of the beautiful things about the blogging community is the relationships it builds!

Rules?  Write long or short, a list or a story, include photos or not. Just Remember Him and what He has done, and let the gratitude of your heart guide you. Let’s make Monday so Rejoice, that the goodness of God spills into the rest of the week!

Note: The Linky Powers That Be suggested that you load your own photo from your computer. For some reason, it will not load from your link. I will continue to try to sort this problem out. I apologize for the inconvenience.

Places I’m Linking at This Week:
 Inspire Me Monday,   Instaencouragements, 
Legacy Link-Up, Recharge Wednesday
 Faith on Fire, Tell His Story, Grace&Truth
Let’s Have Coffee Wednesday Celebrate Your Story
Scripture&Snapshot, Sunday Scripture Blessings
Sweet Tea & Friends Monthly Link-up