1000 Gifts (15-20)

15. The salvation of my friend Matt! After years of living for himself, God is providing opportunities in his life to be obedient to the One True Living God. And he is taking them on head-on. So thankful for the desire in his heart to know the Lord!

16. My new job at the Wesley Connection. God has provided for me in so many ways financially already this semester. Not only do I get a paycheck, but yet another opportunity to share Christ's love with others. These kids are great and I love them so much already, only after two days.

17. The love and accountability I have with my sisters in Christ. There are a few special ladies in my life that I have to thank for hearing my story of who I once was and choosing not to judge me but accept me as the new creation God has made me to be. I know that I can go to them with struggles I am facing and they will give me a dose of tough love and point me to Christ. Some of them have very similar stories as I do, and we can relate to one another's hardships. Others have no clue how to relate, yet love me the same. I thank you all!

18. My beautiful sister Deeanna. She is without doubt my favorite person in the world! Although she is younger than me, I admire her so much. Her love for the Lord radiates from her and everyone who meets her gets a glimpse of what it's like to know Jesus. I'm thankful for the many blessings and gifts God has bestowed on her to make her the amazing young woman she is becoming.

19. My relationship with my Mom. Things haven't always been easy between us. But the Lord has restored our relationship this past year or so, and made it better than I could ever imagine. I'm thankful for her forgiveness for past transgressions and ability to love me more than ever. Thank you for not only being a mom who loves and cares for me, but a friend who I can now confide in.

20. Prayer. It's what starts it all. It's one of the reasons I have so many things to be thankful for. Because of the ability to communicate with a great and powerful God on such a close and intimate level, lives are changed. I love that it can happen anytime and anywhere. It can be by yourself in room with nobody else or with hundreds of other students all together at once. I'm also thankful that when our hearts are not right and selfishness is in our prayers, the Holy Spirit knows best and intercedes for us in prayer. I'm thankful for the prayer my friends and I had together last night and our desire to be intentional with praying for one another and a new semester.