One Thousand Gifts #'s 1 - 3

One Thousand Gifts

I'm reading Ann Voskamp's book, One Thousand Gifts. According to her website, simply put, this book is a celebration of grace and a recognition of the power of gratitude. It's all about being so thankful for the little things, that you become a person full of joy. As part of the accompanying devotional, Voskamp encourages readers to make their own list of one thousand gifts, which I've started. It's been fun becoming more aware of what's going on around me, of what gifts the Lord has put in my path.

For my Thankful Thursday posts each week, I'm going to start highlighting the new items I've added to my list. These aren't always big things. Sometimes, it's the littlest things that stick out the most. This week, I've added 3 things...

#1 - my Christian heritage

I'm so thankful for the heritage passed down to me from my parents and grandparents. I'm thankful that I was taken to church from the time I was born on. I'm thankful that I was taught to love learning about God and His Word. I'm thankful that I wasn't just taught to do these things... I was taught by example. I'm thankful I was able to see my parents and grandparents studying the Word, attending (and participating in) church, and living godly Christian lives.

#2 - the joy of learning in my students

I'm thankful for students that really are eager to learn. I'm thankful that they enjoy coming to school and that they have fun at school. I'm thankful that they work hard and want to excel.

#3 - free translation websites

I'm thankful for websites that help me translate words/phrases into the various languages spoken by my students. While it is, of course, important for them to be learning how to speak/read/understand English, there occasionally are times when I need to be positive they understand a concept, a word, a set of directions, etc. And since I don't speak the majority of their native languages, websites like these help so incredibly much.