34 Reasons I’m Grateful

Happy Monday, Y'all

Guess whose birthday is tomorrow!

Yep, that’s right.

It absolutely boggles my mind that I’m turning 34. I so do not feel that old. 

At any rate, here I am.

So in honor of me turning the big 3-4 tomorrow, I’m sharing 34 reasons (in no particular order) why I am grateful.

1. I’m grateful for my relationship with my Savior. I’m grateful for His love and grace. I’m grateful for His saving power and I’m grateful for His forgiveness when I mess up. I’m grateful for His incredible goodness. I’m grateful for all He is to me.

2. I’m grateful for the lessons He is teaching me. And I’m grateful for His incredible patience and guidance when I’m hard-headed and don’t learn those lessons right away.

3. I’m grateful for the Holy Spirit. I’m grateful for the Holy Spirit’s role in my life as a Spirit-filled believer. I’m grateful for every single characteristic and gift of the Holy Spirit. And I am grateful for the joy, freedom, and peace that comes from exercising those gifts.

4. I’m grateful for God’s Word.

5. I’m grateful my parents raised me in church. I’m grateful that I have been blessed to serve the Lord from such a young age. I’m grateful for parents who preached the Word no matter where they were, with words and actions. I’m grateful for the example they set for us.

6. I’m grateful for the memories I have of (with) my dad. 

7. I’m grateful for a mom who is so much to me. I’m grateful for her being my confidant, my best advice giver, my biggest encourager and supporter and pusher of me following my dreams. I’m grateful for her being my best friend and the best mom a girl could ever have.

8. I’m grateful to not have to travel by myself all the time, while on the road for my missions support raising. I’m so grateful for having this lady as my favorite roadtrip buddy.

9. I’m grateful for a brother who has grown into one of the hardest working men I know. I’m grateful for his love and dedication to his family. I’m grateful for his generous heart and his gentle nature. 

10. I’m grateful for my sister-in-law and all she brings to our family. I’m grateful for how much she loves my brother and their girls. I’m grateful for those rare chats that remind me what a gift having a sister is.

11. I’m grateful for my oldest niece, the one who gave me the name, Zizzie. I’m so grateful for the bond we share. 

12. I’m grateful for my youngest niece and her super sweet, bubbly spirit. 

13. I’m grateful for the Assemblies of God. I’m thankful for he support and encouragement of this organization. I’m thankful for the truth it teaches and stands for.

14. I’m grateful for the men and women who have supported my ministry in Senegal all these years. From people praying to people giving money and supplies to so much more...

15. I’m grateful for pastors who believe in missions and supporting missionaries. 

16. I’m grateful for friends. Some I’ve had since childhood, some since high school or college, and some from various jobs I’ve had as an adult. I’m thankful for those who respect the word “friendship” and all it stands for.

17. I’m grateful for AGWM and for the ability to be one of their missionaries. I’m grateful for all they do and all they provide.

18. I’m grateful for Dakar Academy. I’m thankful for a school I enjoy teaching at. 

19. I’m grateful for the title, “Ms. Nichols.” I’m grateful for my role as a teacher to 100+ students over the years.

20. I’m grateful for the chance to teach Special Education and be the advocate and voice for kids who need me to be that. I’m grateful for the challenge of my job. 

21. I’m grateful for the woman who helps me in my classroom. She has no idea just how much she helped me last school year. She is so amazing at it! The kids love her. I love her! I seriously cannot day enough about how grateful I am for her being a part of our class “family.”

22. I’m grateful for Senegal and the gift of calling it one of my “homes” for the past ten years. 

23. I’m grateful for my education. I’m grateful for my BS and MEd degrees. And I’m grateful for the chance to now pursue a second MEd degree. I’m grateful for a brain that can learn and actually enjoys learning.

24. I’m grateful for Internet. I’m grateful for the ability to connect with family and supporters back home. I’m grateful for the ability to complete schooling online, too.

25. I’m grateful for my heritage. 

26. I’m grateful that I am an American and a Southerner. I’m grateful for the good of my homes. I’m grateful for all the good they stand for.

27. I’m grateful for books to read. I’m grateful for a huge library here in Dakar. And I’m grateful for inexpensive options online, as well. And yes, I’m also grateful for the cheap options at the stores in almost every airport, too :)

28. I’m grateful for good music. At the moment, I’m choosing to only listen to Christian music. And I’m so grateful for iTunes and Apple Music allowing me such great options. 

29. I’m grateful for airplanes and pilots and the ability to safely travel across an ocean between my two “homes.”

30. I’m grateful for Kids Club, which I lead at DA. 

31. I’m grateful for the Drama Team at DA, which I’ll be leading this school year. I’m so grateful for this opportunity to get to know this group of high schoolers a bit better.

32. I’m grateful for my students. For these 5 and the ones to join them this year...

33. I’m grateful for this blog and how it allows me to write and share my creativity in this way. 

34. I’m grateful to be turning 34 tomorrow. I’m grateful to God for seeing fit to allow me another year on this earth :)

There are so many more things (and people) for which I am grateful. There’s no way I could list them all...

So what about you? 

What are you grateful for today?

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I started my monthly Growing in Gratitude posts, as part of the link-up fun, hosted by Julie from Fall into Life, where bloggers would share a bit of gratitude each month. Julie stopped hosting the link-up in July. But I decided to keep going with my monthly gratitude-themed post. After all, there's always something for which we can be grateful. Right? :)

Anywho, in case you missed my previous month's posts...

You can click below to read them.

February - My Why

March - Photos from February  

April - Random List of Gratitude 

May - Lessons Learned

June - The 2018-2019 School Year

July - Random Bits of Gratitude