“Gratitude practice is useful because it turns the mind in such a way that it enables you to live into life or, more accurately, to die into life. Having access to the joy and wonderment of life is the antidote to feelings of scarcity and loss. It allows you to meet life’s difficulties with an open heart.” Philip Moffitt
At church yesterday, I was blessed to hear Cynthia Ownby preach a beautiful sermon on Psalm 84. She talked about our journey through life and how we sometimes find ourselves in the deepest parched valleys. God is present in the valley and blesses us along the way with pools and wells that give us sustenance and help us find our way.
Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.
As they pass through the Valley of Baka,
they make it a place of springs;
the autumn rains also cover it with pools. 7 They go from strength to strength,
till each appears before God in Zion. (Psalm 84:5-7)
The picture above is taken in Zion National Park. It is in the middle of a vast dessert. A dry, baron place. In the middle of the desert is this beautiful valley with springs and vegetation. One of the most beautiful valleys I have ever seen.
As I go through life, gratitude practice is a quiet, peaceful well. A pool that offers sustenance in the midst of the desert of our culture of scarcity. I am grateful today for the pools and wells. I am grateful as I look back on my path and see the hand of God in so many places.
I am a seeker of Gratitude. I enjoy sharing my time as a therapist, mom, wife, friend, sister, cook, reader, yogini, hiker, crocheter, etc. My husband and I have been in the ministry for over 20 years and love experiencing God's hand in the lives of the people we walk through life with. I love hearing what others are thankful for!
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1 thought on “The Deepest Valley, Wells, and Pools”
1. I am consistently grateful that I can remember what it was like to be a child. In a college class I used to teach, I had a piece of an assignment that required my students to write a paragraph about a childhood learning experience. Each semester, someone told me they couldn’t remember any… I can’t even imagine that. My memories of being little often guide me as a mother.
2. My son has a raging head cold, and I’ve kept him home from school We’ve spent a lot of side-by-side time, and I love getting to hear the random thoughts during the day. It’s a window into this time in his life.
3. My son has discovered the joy of singing to music with headphones on. Memaw and I have each been blessed to be an audience of numerous solo performances the past two days. You will understand why I say “It’s easy to smile.” while listening.
Gratitude 
1. I am consistently grateful that I can remember what it was like to be a child. In a college class I used to teach, I had a piece of an assignment that required my students to write a paragraph about a childhood learning experience. Each semester, someone told me they couldn’t remember any… I can’t even imagine that. My memories of being little often guide me as a mother.
2. My son has a raging head cold, and I’ve kept him home from school We’ve spent a lot of side-by-side time, and I love getting to hear the random thoughts during the day. It’s a window into this time in his life.
3. My son has discovered the joy of singing to music with headphones on. Memaw and I have each been blessed to be an audience of numerous solo performances the past two days. You will understand why I say “It’s easy to smile.” while listening.