“For this child I have prayed, and the Lord has granted me the desires of my heart.”      (I Samuel 1:27)

There have been moments before in my life when God has answered my prayers in miraculous ways, so that there is simply no denying that He was always in control of the situations. The only possible response from me is utter thankfulness and a greater understanding of God’s loving care for me.

One of our grandsons has been “ours” for almost six years, but legally he was only the child of our son’s wife. We first met him when he was three months old, and he immediately wiggled his way into our hearts! He has been part of all our family events for so long that the legality of his standing with our family had become a non-issue. In our hearts, our son was the little boy’s daddy and we were his grandma and grandpa!

My husband and I have been petitioning God for years to work out the details for Jeremiah’s legal adoption into our family. The biological father has never been involved in his son’s life, but he had refused to sign documents to allow the adoption. We received word yesterday that those documents have been signed! The joy we are feeling defies words. We can only echo Hannah’s prayer, “For this child I have prayed, and the Lord has granted me the desires of my heart.”

The weather in southern Iowa has turned cold overnight! The political ads have finally ceased, and the televisions are now blasting us with commercialized Christmas. Wasn’t there once a special day called Thanksgiving? Has it been discounted as no longer relevant to our “I want it all for me” society?

There was a post on Facebook today offering a pledge that might be appropriate. The pledge was this, “I will not shop on Thanksgiving Day.” The post further suggested that Thanksgiving Day is for families, for gathering together with the people who have given meaning to our lives and for considering all the blessings we enjoy day by day.

Think about some of the traditional “things” for which we claim to be thankful:

1. Our family. Yes, those very people who, according to our complaints, frustrate us, ask too much of us, don’t appreciate us enough, and otherwise just disappoint us. Would anyone guess how important those people are to us by what they hear us say?
2. Our church. That place where we know we should be more often than we are!
3. Our health. Yet we do not have the gumption to eat less and exercise more.
4. Our job. That institution that robs us of our time in exchange for enough money to pay our bills.

So, what is the point of Thanksgiving? It is a day that gently reminds us to rethink our attitudes. We can choose to be thankful for families who are close enough to share the little moments of everyday life. We can rethink the importance of God in our daily life and recommit to holding the church high on our priority list. We can resolve to protect our health by doing that walk, putting down that soda, or getting the rest that would make our days go smoother. And we can re-evaluate the dissatisfactions that drag us down every day while we are “making a living.”

The state of thankfulness is a choice. We can choose to grumble about all the things that disappoint us, or we can choose to delight in all the blessings God has given us.

October is almost here! We are approaching one of my favorite times of the year. The changing of the trees, the colorful mums and bright pumpkins, the sight of combines chewing their way through the harvest-ready fields – they are all things that I enjoy.

For several years, we have assembled in our yard a corn shock and scarecrow display in the fall, complete with a square bale of hay and mums and pumpkins at the feet of the scarecrow. The grandkids dubbed the scarecrow the “silly man” years ago, and the title has stuck! It has been a great spot for grandkid pictures each year.

God is so good to us, to give us a beautiful variety of weather to enjoy.  He similarly gives us different joys at different stages of our lives.  He who made us definitely knows how to bless us!

In my book, “To Comfort a King,” Abishag repeatedly witnessed the simple, yet so intense, passion that King David and Bathsheba shared. On the king’s good days, the two of them enjoyed just sitting together and chatting quietly about the events of the day. They sometimes reminisced about favorite memories from their past. Even when the king was not able to respond to her, Bathsheba affectionately stroked his white hair, or kissed his dry lips, or cupped his wrinkled face with her own aged palm. And sometimes, they just were together silently, each taking comfort in the mere presence of the other.

In many ways, the aged population in our society is considered “worthless.” Perhaps it is that group of people who truly know how to love. The brash urgency of young passion has been replaced by a tender patience whose purpose is to please and uplift one’s partner. They understand the importance of a warm quilt of lovely memories shared with their loved one. They have a matured sense of the brevity of life and are determined to make their moments together count.

If you have been blessed to observe an older couple in your family or your church congregation, learn from their example! Honor and serve your life partner or your dearest friend with a greater appreciation for the joys you can share as you create memories to keep you warm in your old age.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”  Jeremiah 29:11

Have you found yourself in a place where you wonder, How can God use THIS to prosper me? In my book, “To Comfort a King,” Abishag begins to question God’s goodness in placing her in the king’s service. She suffers many personal losses as well as scorn from some in the palace. Will she grow bitter toward God?

Those of us who grew up in church know the words of Romans 8:28, promising that all things will work together for the good of those who love the Lord. Knowing the words and experiencing the promise are two very different things! Claiming God’s grace as we work through sorrows and disappointments in life is not an easy thing. Human nature would foster bitterness, anger and discontent in those situations. Graciously accepting the circumstances that God puts in our paths can happen only as a result of the confidence we can find in Jeremiah 29:11.

Hasn’t everyone held a baby and felt his tiny fingers curl tightly around one of their own? Babies seem to crave human touching. Often they can be hushed immediately by the familiar touch of their mother. Many mothers know how to soothe a crying child by softly patting his back, or smoothing a fingertip across his eyebrow, or rubbing a thumb across his cheek.

Do we outgrow the need for human touch? When my youngest child was 11, he still sat on my lap occasionally. I remember thinking to myself: I hope he never gets too old to do this. But, he did. In only another year, it was no longer cool to relate to his mother that way. When the children are small, it is so natural to hug them, and kiss them, and tell them how much we love them. Why does it get so difficult when they get older?

In my book “To Comfort a King,” much of the comfort Abishag provides the king is through touch. She massages his aching arms and legs and shoulders. She washes his hair for him. She applies lotions following the baths. She tucks warm blankets close to him.

What happens when the king returns that comfort and touches Abishag? It completes the circle of their friendship, and it becomes a very precious part of their relationship. Is there someone you love who needs your touch?