A Season of Thanks: Day 18

On this 18th day of gratitude, I find myself grateful for quite a few things. Today is a good day; my cup runneth over.

Here are a few of the things that are making my list:
~ A best friend to journey this life with
~ Sleeping in (work starts 90 minutes later on Fridays)
~ An unexpected discount on contacts
~ ELLA DAY!!!!!
~ In-laws on their way to visit
~ Warm sunshine and a cool breeze, making it feel like a genuine fall day
~ Office shelves slowly filling up
~ Time to think, to reflect, and to tread slowly upon this Earth

I've been thinking a lot today about emotions.
In the past 24 hours I've had quite a few different feelings, and when I consider the Hope of yesterday, I am reminded that Hope surpasses feelings.
The tough ones.
And the good ones.

It doesn't matter how I'm "feeling" in any given moment if I truly have Hope. Hope and "wish" are not synonyms. Hope is a certainty. It is an unwavering commitment to that which we believe. The writers of the Epistles put it this way:

Romans 8:25:
But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

Galatians 5:5:
But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope.

I Thessalonians 4:13:
We do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest, who have no hope.

Hebrews 10:23:
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.

Hebrews 11:1:
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

Today, my gratitude is overwhelmingly for the feelings that are a gift from God.
All of them.
The ones I soak up like a sponge.
The ones that rip my heart to pieces.

I am grateful for them because in their wavering is where I find the never-changing Hope. I am grateful that I am a woman who feels intensely. When I am delighted, it overcomes my being. When I am sad, I weep huge, ugly tears. When I am angry, the entire world might be my target. When I love, the world stops while I adore the one who has my affections. When I fear, it is physically taxing on my body. I love this portion of my createdness. I love that I have been designed as one who knows the crushing blow of rejection and the sheer elation of love.

I rejoice in my brokenness and in my revelry.
Not necessarily in the moment.
But in reflection, I see that the constant shift in emotions is what keeps my faith so stable.

I cannot trust my emotions.
I dare not trust "my gut feeling."
I trust only in Hope.

And Hope is eternal.