Petals from the Basket

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2 + 2 = Thank You!

We are setting aside the thirty days of November to be intentional about demonstrating and expressing our gratitude. We’d love for you to join us!
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“To teach is to touch a life forever” is more than just a catchy phrase on a mug or a sweet saying that you can cross-stitch for your child’s classroom teacher this Christmas. I recently got to thank my second-grade teacher for teaching me more than just math and science. Though I grew up in a home where reading books was part of everyday life, this gentle but enthusiastic teacher showed me that reading was truly fun, and that it could open new doors for me all through life.

God not only made us; He gave us the wonderful gift of instructors to help prepare us and train us for the purpose He has for our lives. Though I got to thank my former teacher in person the day our paths crossed in town, I plan to send her a note of thanks today. It’s the least this book-loving adult can do!

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Today’s “leave a comment” questions:
What “life lesson” did you learn from a teacher?
How will you thank a teacher today?
____________________
Click here to download the “guide” we are using for the
Thirty Days of Gratitude.
___________
 Would you like us to e-mail our posts to you? We’ll only send you
the blog posts—no spam—and we won’t give your information to anyone else!
In fact, you can unsubscribe at any time, and we’ll still be friends!
Subscribe to Petals from the Basket by e-mail. 
 
 
By Petals from the Basket | November 5, 2013 | Bible Reading, Ideas, The Card Store - Letter-Writing, Thirty Days of Gratitude |

Sing a Song of Gratitude

We are setting aside the thirty days of November to be intentional about demonstrating and expressing our gratitude. We’d love for you to join us!
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Properly planned and prepared music readies the heart for worship. In fact, it engages the heart in worship. The key to focus on today—the element that will pique your gratitude trigger—is the fact that the music you hear and participate in during church services has indeed been carefully planned and prepared through prayer and practice. Whether you select a vocalist, an instrumentalist, a children’s choir director, or a minister of music as your gratitude recipient, use this opportunity to thank this person for his or her ministry in your life. When speaking to, e-mailing, or sending a note to this person, try to include a particular song that God used to encourage or strengthen you through that individual’s gifts and talents.

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Today’s comment question:
Is your heart engaged as you participate in worship through music?
If you’re a church musician, what does it mean to you when someone shares the impact of your carefully prepared music?
____________________
Click here to download the “guide” we are using for the
Thirty Days of Gratitude.
___________
 Would you like us to e-mail our posts to you? We’ll only send you
the blog posts—no spam—and we won’t give your information to anyone else!
In fact, you can unsubscribe at any time, and we’ll still be friends!
Subscribe to Petals from the Basket by e-mail. 
 
 
By Petals from the Basket | November 4, 2013 | Bible Reading, Ideas, Music, The Card Store - Letter-Writing, Thirty Days of Gratitude |

Grateful for Gray Hair

We are setting aside the thirty days of November to be intentional about demonstrating and expressing our gratitude. We’d love for you to join us!
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In Psalm 71:18, the psalmist writes, “Now also when I am old and grayheaded,
O God, do not forsake me, until I declare Your strength to this generation,
Your power to everyone who is to come” (NKJV). Today’s gratitude recipient is someone who either already has or who will soon have gray hair, merely due to the nature of his or her biological age.

In the verse I just shared, the psalmist’s prayer is for God to use him to continue to teach God’s strength and power to “the next generation.” As you think of those “grayheaded” saints who serve in your church or who minister or mentor to you and/or your family in some way, take a moment today to let them know that their life’s song is still singing to you in melodious tones. Your words of gratitude will be “music” to their ears!

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Today’s comment question:
How has an older man or woman ministered to you this past week? 
If you are an older man or woman, how have you shown God’s strength and power to the younger generation this week?
____________________
Click here to download the “guide” we are using for the
Thirty Days of Gratitude.
___________
 Would you like us to e-mail our posts to you? We’ll only send you
the blog posts—no spam—and we won’t give your information to anyone else!
In fact, you can unsubscribe at any time, and we’ll still be friends!
Subscribe to Petals from the Basket by e-mail. 
 
 
By Petals from the Basket | November 3, 2013 | Bible Reading, Family, Friends, The Card Store - Letter-Writing, Thirty Days of Gratitude |

The Cyclical Impact of Gratitude

We are setting aside the thirty days of November to be intentional about demonstrating and expressing our gratitude. We’d love for you to join us!
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Today is one of those great days in the Thirty Days of Gratitude when you get to express thanks to a friend who listens to you and encourages you. Your words of gratitude—whether in a simple e-mail, a handwritten card, or by way of a tangible gift—will likely be pushed to the side as this friend finds it more important to bring you joy than to accept your praise. Do it anyway!

But let me encourage you to go beyond the simple expression of gratitude today. Demonstrate your gratitude by following your friend’s example and being a listener and encourager to someone else today. When gratitude takes its rightful place, it has a transforming power that makes a lasting impact and encourages the same response in others!

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Today’s comment question:
How will you express your gratitude today,
and how will your demonstration of gratitude affect others?
____________________
Click here to download the “guide” we are using for the
Thirty Days of Gratitude.
___________
 Would you like us to e-mail our posts to you? We’ll only send you
the blog posts—no spam—and we won’t give your information to anyone else!
In fact, you can unsubscribe at any time, and we’ll still be friends!
Subscribe to Petals from the Basket by e-mail.
 

By Petals from the Basket | November 2, 2013 | Bible Reading, Events, Friends, Thirty Days of Gratitude |

Grateful to God and for God!

We are setting aside the thirty days of November to be intentional about demonstrating and expressing our gratitude. Join in whenever you can!

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Because God is today’s gratitude recipient, it’s a great day for a “Praise Walk” (or sit, or drive, or run, etc.)! Honor the God of truth today by living “all out” for His glory!

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Today’s comment question:
What do you think it means that God is the “God of truth,”
and how will that impact your life today?
____________________
Click here to download the “guide” we are using for the
Thirty Days of Gratitude.
___________
 Would you like us to e-mail our posts to you? We’ll only send you
the blog posts—no spam—and we won’t give your information to anyone else!
In fact, you can unsubscribe at any time, and we’ll still be friends!
Subscribe to Petals from the Basket by e-mail.

By Petals from the Basket | November 1, 2013 | Bible Reading, Events, Thirty Days of Gratitude |