The Gift of Hope

Don't you just love this time of year?  I sure do!  Fall is simply my most favorite season.  There are so many things to love about it.  The trees are dressed in a glorious riot of color.  Families across the country are celebrating the Lord's abundant harvest and His faithful provision.  Homes are beautifully decorated with pumpkins, cornstalks, and enormous pots of chrysanthemums.  This time of year, my family gathers to snuggle into warm fleece blankets, drink hot coffee (and creamy hot chocolate :D), and watch our favorite movies.  It is finally time for the white bean chicken chili (thanks to a recipe from Paula Deen) to be simmering on the stove, and to have a warm, crackling fire glowing in the fireplace.

Isn't is amazing how the smell of something wonderful can change your whole perspective?  Just knowing that Prince Charming (my oh so sweet, and terribly handsome hubby), and our now all-grown-up children, will have something warm and filling to eat for dinner gives me such a sense of contentment.  It could be chili, stew, or good old vegetable soup, but whatever the meal, it just says "Home".  Add to that some cornbread and this girl is in heaven.

It is also around this time of year that I begin my yearly search through the holiday magazines to find some fresh inspiration for our home's Christmas decorations.  Sometimes I find an idea that will last for years to come.  Other times, I can't find anything new that seems like a good fit.  Either way, the fun is in the search...the possibility that I will find something beautiful.  Isn't it funny how life can also be that way?  Even when things aren't going the way you might want them to, there is always hope around the corner...a fresh perspective that can change the way you see your whole day. 

This is just one of the many incredible gifts from our Heavenly Father.  Hope.  Isn't is amazing how much power is contained in that little word?  So...that is my prayer for you (and me) today.  Lord, help us all to see your gift of hope...and the gift of the One that we will celebrate with such gusto in the next few weeks. 

So, today, I am grateful for hope. 

What are you grateful for today?