Happy Thanksgiving: With Grateful Hearts

This was posted on November 28, 2013 by Sarah Maxwell.

It’s a joy to celebrate God’s gracious gifts! May each of you have a special day remembering what the Lord has done for you!

Happy Thanksgiving!

(We did not send each other’s lists to compare them. They all came to Sarah, who wrote hers before she looked at any ;-). Enjoy!)

Steve & Teri

Steve’s:

Thankful to be able to spend eternity praising the Lord Jesus and God the Father through the Holy Spirit.
My wife of 39 years who has been my team mate endeavoring to serve the Lord Jesus together.
For the delight my children are and their hearts.
We have freedom to worship and and serve Christ.
A local church to worship with fellow believers and fellowship together with.
Mothers who choose to carry their babies to full term.
Thankful for the families God has allowed Titus2 to come alongside of.

Teri’s:

Salvation through the shed blood of my Savior, Jesus Christ
My wonderful husband and children, daughters in laws, grandchildren, and parents
God’s Word
Those who pray for us
Titus2 ministry
Health to be able to participate in life
Food and shelter

Nathan (and family)

Nathan’s:

God and our salvation through Jesus Christ
Melanie
Abigail, Bethany, and Christina
Employment
Health

Melanie’s:

Lord and His Salvation
Hubby and girls
Home
Family and Friend relationships
Food
Freedoms

Abby’s:

My bed
My warm house
Toys
Daddy and Mommy
My chickens and eggs

Bethany’s:

Thanksgiving
Daddy’s birthday
Snickerdoodles
My blankie

Christopher (and family)

Christopher’s:

A God who loves me so much that He would send His Only Son to take my punishment and offer me the gift of salvation.
Anna Marie (she’s amazing) and Joshua (he’s a blast).
New life: we’re looking forward to Little Maxwell’s arrival in (Lord willing) February.
Health
Work
Time. The blessing of another year filled with memories, time together, special projects, and more.
Grandparents who live next door and being able to help Grandad as he deals with Parkinson’s.

Anna Marie’s:

Salvation in Jesus Christ and the grace He gives to serve Him and follow in His footsteps.
My beloved husband! It is a joy to stand beside him as he leads our little family in the Word!
God’s Word and the freedom we have to possess and study it in our country.
Motherhood. What a huge blessing to be allowed the privilege of raising our children for God’s glory!
Joshua, our little man who fills our lives with new adventures and laughter.
Our new baby who is growing and becoming more and more active! 🙂 So eager to meet him/her in a few short months!
All of our family and friends near and far who love us and encourage us in our walks with the Lord Jesus. Thank you to you all, and Happy Thanksgiving!

Sarah

Jesus Christ, my Savior
Family (they are the best editing team!)
God’s Word
Christmas Comes to Sunflower Scripture Project Families
You! Our Titus2 blog readers
Health
God’s mercy

Joseph

My Savior, Jesus Christ. He saved me and bought me from the dreadful destiny of hell. To the day I die, I desire to serve Him with everything that I am.
My family, and especially my parents. They have been so loving and encouraging in Jesus. I am forever grateful for them.
You all. Thank you so much for your support and encouragement of this ministry. You all are incredible cheerleaders, encouraging this ministry on to even better things!
Things that are easy to take for granted. A few examples are every breath I take, the sun rising each morning, and food on the table.
A free nation, where we are able, at this point, to worship and serve our Creator, and can raise children (if/when the Lord gives me some), in accordance with God’s Word.
Music. I love working with the others in my family on music to honor and glorify Jesus.
My job. I am very grateful for the work that God has provided me.

John

I am thankful for what Jesus did on the cross for me, in saving me from my sins.
I am grateful for my family. The older I get, the more I realize and see how rare it is to have a close-knit family.
I am blessed with a fantastic church, a great pastor, and a wonderful group of believers to worship with.
I am thankful to be healthy. One usually doesn’t realize how blessed they are, until they lose it.
I am thankful for a free country. At the same time, I am deeply saddened by the suffering of Pastor Saeed. This is his second Thanksgiving away from his family. I pray that he is released to his family soon.
I am thankful for work. At a time when so many are without a job right now, work is such a blessing.
I am grateful for brothers and sisters in Christ.

Anna

Jesus – I am so thankful that Jesus paid my sin debt for me! I know I deserve Hell, but I am very thankful that because of Him I can look forward to that day. “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” 1 Corinthians 15:52
My Dad and Mom – I cannot thank the Lord enough for blessing me with such amazing parents! They have invested so much in my life, and I am forever grateful for their patience and love in raising me.
My Family – I love each of them sooo much!
Titus2 – it is a joy to be able to travel together and share the amazing life that we have in Christ! I never tire of hearing of families that turn their face from the world and start striving on the narrow way.
My nieces and nephew – I can’t get enough of them. It’s such a blast to be able to play and enjoy each of their special personalities!
The Bible – I am so grateful to have God’s Word at my fingertips! There are so many people who still do not have a Bible in their own language!
Prayer – I am humbled that we can talk to the King of kings at any moment! What a privilege to be able to carry our burdens to Him.

Jesse

The Lord Jesus, His death on the cross for me, and care for me
Each one in my family
Working with my brother from home
A wonderful, warm house
Playing music as a group, and the outreach opportunities that brings
Our church and pastor (Dad)
The opportunity to travel and encourage families

Mary

My Savior Jesus Christ. He is the One Who saved me from an eternity in hell.
My family! They are totally such a love support.
The Bible! It’s my bread and butter for the day but also my encouragement.
For creativity and art. It’s lovely to see how God created this world in such a beautiful manner, and He has enabled us to create beautiful things today.
I’m so grateful for life. If Dad and Mom hadn’t had a reversal, I wouldn’t be here.
I am so grateful the Lord has given me health, so I can stay active.
My amazing nieces and nephew. They add that wonderful spice to life always making us love and laugh.

“I will give thee thanks in the great congregation:
I will praise thee among much people.”
Psalms 35:18

Week #3: Over Half Way!

This was posted on November 26, 2013 by Sarah Maxwell.

I praise the Lord for such an incredible group who has joined together to memorize God’s Word during these four weeks. We’re now over half way, and the finish line is in sight!

The Christmas Comes to Sunflower story is in the final editing stage before it goes to our copyeditor tomorrow. The Lord has helped every detail come together, and I’m very excited.

I pray the Lord uses His Word in your lives richly as you memorize and meditate on it. Keep that memorization work up!

Here’s a suggestion from one of our Scripture project families:

We use a white board. Each morning I erase an additional word or two from each verse (and Scripture reference), and each person has to read it, filling in the blanks. Then, each person tries to say it from memory. We’ve also written individual words or phrases out on index cards, mixed them up, then had the children put them in order and read them. Then we remove several words, and they have to try to say the verse, filling in the missing words. Finally, they try to say it from memory.

May your thanksgiving be a special reflection of God’s goodness this week.

Serving Jesus,
Sarah

“Thy testimonies have I taken as an heritage for ever:
for they are the rejoicing of my heart.”
Psalms 119:111

Working At Joseph’s House

This was posted on November 25, 2013 by Sarah Maxwell.

Life is busy with writing projects, life, and music practice (more on that later).

Saturday, Dad, Joseph, and Jesse took time to work at Joseph’s house, including painting and installing door handles. It’s awesome to see the main floor being finished out.

Watch for a recipe post from Anna soon!

With Gratefulness,
Sarah

“O fear the LORD, ye his saints:
for there is no want to them that fear him.”
Psalms 34:9

Sparkle of Joy

This was posted on November 19, 2013 by Anna.

Yesterday afternoon we enjoyed a wonderful outside Aunties’ playtime that included much laughter, joy, running, and games. We were giving “airplane rides” on the swings and talking when we asked Abby and Bethany, “What are you looking forward to most about Christmas?”

Bethany immediately replied with a twinkle in her eye, “The Moodys!” She followed that by quickly saying that she had already done her memory verse! {{Sarah’s note: She and Abby each told me their verse–talk about melting my heart. Beautiful!}}

Serving Jesus,
Anna

“Thou art my portion, O LORD:
I have said that I would keep thy words.”
Psalms 119:57

Week #2: Exciting Progress!

This was posted on November 18, 2013 by Sarah Maxwell.

I can’t tell you how excited I am about this project. Families continue to join, and that’s awesome. If you’ve been thinking about it, you still can. 🙂

Christmas Comes to Sunflower is currently in the editing stage, and I’m loving it. It’s due to go to our copyeditor the day before Thanksgiving. I positively can’t wait to share it with all who complete the project!

One family had to make two entries to sign up because there were so many of them: fifteen in fact, all but the youngest (even the dad and mom are in on it)! They were very kind to give me permission to share their picture with you all.

Here are some memorizing hints from one of our readers:

Write on small cards-3×5 index cut in half or blank business cards are good.
Place in prominent place in house, i.e. over kitchen sink or in bathroom.
Write out entire verse each morning until learned.
Look at just the reference and say the verse out loud.
Cover card with another card and uncover only the portion you have said to be sure it is done from memory.

So, y’all! Stay on board! Keep memorizing to God’s glory!

Joyfully Serving Jesus,
Sarah

“I hate vain thoughts: but thy law do I love.”
Psalms 119:113

Our Neighborhood Ladies’ Brunch

This was posted on November 14, 2013 by Sarah Maxwell.

It was a joy to host our third annual autumn ladies’ brunch last Friday. We had been anticipating this special time of fellowship with our neighbors, and we had a delightful time. Mom once again asked each of us to share a highlight of the past year. This allows us a sweet opportunity of reflection, and I find I learn more about others when they share from their lives. There was much laughter and joy as we talked.

Our menu was: