Thank You Jesus A to Z

During our pre-Thanksgiving service at church this week, we all joined together multiple times to say, “Thank you, Jesus.”

 

Our minister mentioned driving with his daughter and going through the alphabet, thanking God for items which started with each letter.

 

I decided to take that as a challenge this week.

 

A: Anniversary. Murray and I have been married thirty years as of this past August 27.

 

B: Benjamin, my precious child.

 

C: Caleb, my sweet child.

 

D: I thank God for the gift of Caleb’s dog guide Esther, who lived with us for ten and a half years. She was my buddy and always made me smile.

 

E: Esther cat. A special friend who lived with me sixteen years.

 

F: family, my mother, Lila Mae Brinkmann; my brothers, Rodney, Roger and Jim Brinkmann.

 

G: for God, the father who loves me far beyond anything I can imagine.

 

H: For all the happy days God gives me.

 

I: Ice cream. And cake, and cookies, and candy …

 

J: Jesus, my Lord and Savior.

 

K: All the kind people God brings into my life.

 

L: Laughter.

 

M: Murray, my treasure husband.

 

N: For my name. I like the name Kathleen/Kathy.

 

O: For getting older. I thank God for the growth I sometimes see in myself as I grow older.

 

P: Ping-Hwei, my beloved child.

 

Q: Questions. I’m grateful that God allows me to ask him questions and is willing to reason with me.(Isaiah 1:18)

 

R: Rebecca, my lovely child.

 

S: Sarah, my wonderful child.

 

T: Telephones. Whether house phones, flip phones, smart phones, or IPhones, that I can keep in touch with the people I love who do not live near me.

 

U: Ukuleles.

 

V: Vegetables. I’m an equal opportunity eater.

 

W: For writing, the work I love.

 

X: X-rays, very useful.

 

Y: Yarn. So I can knit and crochet.

 

Z: For the zipper on my coat; so warm.

Sweet Memories, Sharp Little Kids

December 29, 1994: We went to a restaurant tonight, and Sarah had some ice cream. She was complaining that it was too cold. The waitress came and asked if everything was okay. We said yes, butSarah said, "Not this ice cream; it's cold."

December 31, 1994: It snowed this morning, and although we had snow in Arkansas and Alabama, it's the first time the kids could really appreciate it. Rebecca said as she ran back and forth between windows, "It's really snowing, it's very great! It's snowing so muchI can't see the sky!" (We lived in Kansas at this point, much more snow.)

January 2, 1995: The kids were in bed in the living room tonight andRebecca said to Caleb, "Caleb, if you lay still and be so quiet, youreyes will close all by themselves, and you'll be asleep."

January 3, 1995: This morning Sarah told me that her heart was beeping while shewas asleep.

January 4, 1995: Yesterday for her birthday, Sarah got a new baby doll from Morgan. (Murray’s brother, who was living with us.) Just now she said, "I want to take my baby doll to Heaven."

Caleb had a picnic at school today, inside, since it was about15 degrees outside at the most. I asked what they had, and he said hotdogs, and juice, and then he said, "Those little square things,they were goofy, they were s'mores."

January 6, 1995: This afternoon I was trying to lay the kids down for a nap. I gave Sarah her new quilt from Grandma Brinkmann, and asked if she liked it, and she said yes. I asked if she wanted me to cover her up. She doesn't like to be covered up much. She said, "If I say no, will that hurt herfeelings?" (Referring to Grandma)   

Sarah got a bucket full of dinosaurs for her birthday. Also in the bucket are some cave-men or something with clubs. The kids take those out of the bucket and put them somewhere else when they play. They don't like them, because, as Rebecca says, "They have bad faces."

The other day I told Sarah that she used to tell me secrets like this. Then I whispered in her ear, "I love you." Then I asked if she would tell me a secret. She whispered, "Tomorrow we're gonnahave doughnuts."

Yesterday Rebecca said Sarah could wear some of her stick-onearrings to church today. Sarah said it was because "I'm growing uplike Rebecca."

January 13, 1995: This afternoon Rebecca put Rhoda (our cat) out the deck door, then she said to me, "Mommy, Rhoda chased a squirrel!" She sounded really disturbed. I tried to explain that that was just what animals did, but she said, "That wasn't nice. The squirrel didn'tlike it. The squirrel was littler than Rhoda."

January 14, 1995: Last night Renato (our exchange student from Brazil) and Morgan cooked supper, and they made mashed potatoes the way Renato's Mom makes them, with heavy cream. At supper, Rebecca asked, "Mommy, why do the mashed potatoes taste so good today?" I guess I won't be making any mashed potatoesfor a while.

January 15, 1995: Tonight there was a party at church. Rebecca said she wanted to get a cookie to take home. Murray got one for her, and she took a bite. Then he got two more. She asked if he was gettingmore for her, and he said, no, one for each of the kids. She thoughtabout it, then said, "I took a bite out of Sarah's."

January 17, 1995: Sarah and I were talking about something this afternoon, and I said, "Don't you have a goofy Mommy?" She said, "FunMommy. We can play with her."

January 19, 1995: The other day Rebecca wanted Murray to do something, and he said, "What's the magic word?" She said, "Monkeys," so of course, that's the new magic word in our home.

January 29, 1995: Tonight in church we were singing something, probably some kind of praise song to Jesus, and Rebecca said to me,"Mom, Jesus is the bestest."

February 5, 1995: This afternoon Caleb told me, "Mommy, I need to do you a favor." I asked what he needed to do for me. He said, "Snapmy pants and tuck in my shirt."

February 18, 1995: Wow! It's not even eight-thirty in the morning yet, and the kids are already really sharp. They were talking abouta man at church who has a wheelchair. I told Caleb that the chair was a tool the man uses to get around, just like Caleb's cane is atool to help him. Sarah asked what Grandma used to get around, andRebecca said a tractor. One of the girls asked if that was a tool, and I said yes. Caleb said, "Weelll, that's a vehicle."

February 23, 1995: We sing a song that goes, "Some of them were singing, and some of them were dancing, but all of them were worshiping the Lord." Yesterday Rebecca sang, "Some of them were singing, and some of them were dancing, and some of them were reading the Bible, and some of them were praying, but all of them wereworshiping the Lord."

Grace and Truth, John 5:1-15

Jesus heals a man waiting for the troubling of the pool, which is said to have healing powers. Jesus has compassion for him, though the man gives no indication that he will choose to follow Jesus. Instead the man goes to inform the leaders it was Jesus who broke their law.

But Jesus still showers grace on the man—both giving him health and telling him how to prevent even worse trouble for his life and soul.

Thank you, Lord, for how you love me in ways I don’t even know. Help me to thank you more.

Sweet Memories, These Tiny Kids Are Learning So Much

August, 1994: About this time we had two more people join our home—Renato, an exchange student from Brazil, and Murray’s brother Morgan.

August 31, 1994: Last night, Renato let Rhoda in to eat and Sarah, still nervous about the cat, said, "That boy let the kitty in; isn't he goofy?"

After that, Goofy Boy became Renato’s permanent nickname.

September 7, 1994: I was wiping the kids' hands after breakfast today and Caleb said, "Mommy, you don't wash my sins away; Jesus does."

September 13, 1994: Sarah hurt herself today, so she wanted me to rock her, and she was sitting on my lap in the rocking chair. I said I would sing one more song, then I was getting up. I asked if she wanted to sit at the table and play, or to lay down. She said she wanted to lay down. I asked if she wanted to lay in her bed or in the big old chair. She said, "On your lap."

October 4, 1994: This morning I was getting all the kids up to take them down to breakfast. I was going into the girls' room to get Sarah when she hopped out of bed and said, "Oh! I forgot to get up!"   

Rebecca is getting the idea down good that the Bible tells us how to live our daily lives. This morning she asked me if the Bible says we can only wear hair pretties when we go bye-bye. I said no, that was just one of Mommy's rules.

Often I ask Sarah what her name is and she will often say "Sarah" or "Sarah Elizabeth McKinsey." Today I asked her, and she said, "My name is monster cookie."

Morgan spent a lot of time cutting and trimming the yard this morning. Rebecca asked what he was doing, and I said he was working hard. She said, "If he's working hard, then he's a Daddy."

October 19, 1994: This morning Rebecca said to me, while sitting on my lap, "Mommy, everybody in the world--it's magic--when you sit down you have a lap, and when you stand up, your lap's all gone.”

October 26, 1994: This morning I was giving Sarah a bath, and I asked her what her name was; I asked if it was Sarah Elizabeth McKinsey. She said no, that it was Frog McKinsey. I asked, "What do you say little froggy?" She said, "I don't know. What does I--me--this little froggy say?"

At supper, Rebecca said she was too full to finish her food. Caleb said, "I'm never full." (A man after my own heart.)

November 3, 1994: Tonight when we were praying, Sarah said to tell Jesus we would die in a minute. I said that someday we'd die and go to Heaven to be with Jesus. Caleb asked what we would ride to Heaven. I said that Jesus would carry us in His arms. Caleb said, "I want to hold the Holy Spirit's hand.”

In the car tonight, Rebecca was talking about how she'd like to get a big dog. Caleb said, "I want a lion."

November 28, 1994: The other night, Murray took the kids to the mall. Rebecca saw a lady in a bridal shop, all dressed in a wedding gown, with veil and all. She asked, "Daddy, is that a real angel?"

Saturday we were opening Christmas gifts at Grandma Mumberger's house. It was Sarah's turn to open a gift, and we told her to open one. She was happy. She tore the paper off carefully, opened the box, and then quickly took the gift out of the box and threw it at me. Then she said excitedly, "Look what I got!" and showed me the empty box.

November 29, 1994: tonight Sarah was carrying Murray's paper-back book. I asked what she had, and she said it was a Bible. I said it was Daddy's book. She said clearly, "It's similar to a Bible."

December 22, 1994   Sarah always asks if she can do things when she gets bigger. This morning the kids were talking about school, and Sarah asked, "When Rhoda (the cat) gets to be a kid, can she go to school?"

December 28, 1994: The other day Renato was talking to his Mom on the phone, in Portuguese, of course. Rebecca asked, "Why is Renato talking to his Mom in Portuguese? She already knows how to talk it. Why is he teaching her?" He only talks Portuguese to us when he's teaching us.

Tonight, Sarah was on the floor playing with the kitty: "Give me five, give me five." (She’s a lot more comfortable with the cat than she was a few months earlier.)