{Every now and then I join with my friend Leanna to name 7 things I’m grateful for. Join us?}

It is difficult to be settled into everyday gratefulness when, out in the world, there are people dying from gunshot wounds, refugee children and families drowning in the ocean, villages in which there are not enough diapers for babies, and people fighting over who they think Jesus might be in today’s context.

While I am so thankful for my morning cup of coffee and my warm bed and my healthy children, I need my gratitude to be rooted in something deeper than that today.

I need gratitude that is tethered to the ever-close presence of Jesus in the worst of the world.

I need gratitude that is tethered to the Spirit of God, a Spirit that never abandons.

So in the spirit of our #sevengratitudes, I name these things that I am grateful for:

1. A God who sees us beyond and despite our cultural boundaries;
2. Jesus, who calls us friends, siblings, part of the family that he so graciously created for us to belong to;
3. That this same family is inclusive and dynamic, that it’s diverse and progressive, always transforming into another piece of the Mystery of God;
4. Creation teaches us lessons about God, and creation calls us into a deeper understanding of this world–from the birds to the dragonflies, from the rocks to the oceans, we have magnificence at our fingertips everyday;
5. Art in every form that is beautiful and beneficial, that teaches us how to express our humanity;
6. A world in which I can learn from my native and non-native friends, and a world in which I can learn from my Christian and non-Christian friends;
7. This quote by Frederick Buechner, one of my all-time favorites, that sums up everything right now:
   

   “Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don’t be afraid.”

What gratitudes are you counting today?