1000 gifts the book.
Eucharisteo
Eucharisteo the root
is Charis meaning Grace it also holds
its derivative charis meaning joy. He gave thanks reads eucharisteo. Can it lay
a sure foundation under a life? Offer
the fullest life?
Is the height of my chara (joy) dependent on the depths of
my eucharisteo (thanks?)
SO then as long as thanks is possible, then joy is always
possible.
Here and now not where and when
The only place we need to see before we die is this place of
seeing God, here and now.
Charis grace
Eucharisteo Thanksgiving.
Chara Joy
Jesus outside lazarus
tomb says I thank you that you have heard me
Thanksgiving precedes
the miracle
Thanksgiving can
raise the dead.
Thanksgiving always
precedes the miracle
These are Ann Voskamps words from the book 1000 gifts: A dare
to live fully where you are.
It starts for her with a tough life and then a dare to write
down 1000 things she loves. She finds it is a really a dare to name all the ways
God loves her.
To move into His presence and listen to His love. She states
that she thinks this is the other side of prayer, the interior of His throne
room, into the heart of the God-Love. Again her words
She starts the list
and finds it really does bring joy and thanksgiving. She learns to see God here
and now all the time and also learns that it can sometimes be hard to practice Eucharisteo
but so worth it.
I find that as always this is Gods timing. I had looked at
this book and decided I wasn’t sure I liked it and so didn’t start reading it.
Then I went to Greece and learned Efgaristo ( the spelling is wrong but this is
how it sounds when I say it.) means thank you so I practiced as we went to a
few islands and the mainland too. I loved being able to actually try a Greek
word and not feel totally stupid even if I didn’t get it quite right. Then we came back and I saw many folks comment
on this book so finally I got it and started to read it. It is a hard book for
me to read. Sometimes I have to go back and read the same piece a few times. I
have obviously gotten lazy in my reading and have been reading skim books and
so am in the bad habit of skimming. Anyway I decided to start my own book not
unlike her lists which she just did on pieces of paper or pads. So I started it
and suddenly that word keeps popping up.
Even today I got an email from a friend who writes a weekly encouraging
letter and in it the word Grace.
I am in a group that is reading the bible through in a year
and lo and behold there too the word or action of Grace is reappearing often. No I am not surprised just laughing as they
become part of my list.
Maybe I will publish
a few pages from time to time of my Grace notes as I have called them
