One Thousand Gifts - Chapter 2

The vlog for Chapter 2 (A Word To Live... And Die By) of Ann Voskamp's book, One Thousand Gifts, is now online.  I just finished watching the video and reading the blog post underneath it... and it has blessed me tremendously.

Eucharisteo... one simple word, yet packed with life!  Here are some of my favourite quotes from this chapter...

To live either fully alive... or in empty nothingness?

It's the in between that drives us mad.

It's the life in between, the days of walking lifeless, the years calloused and simply going through the hollow motions, the self-protecting by self-distracting, the body never waking, that's lost all capacity to fully feel - this is the life in between that makes us the wild walking dead.

Isn't it here?  The wonder?

The root word of eucharisteo is charis, meaning "grace."  Jesus took the bread and saw it as grace and gave thanks.  He took the bread and knew it to be gift and gave thanks.

... it also hold its derivative, the Greek word chara, meaning "joy."

Deep chara joy is found only at the table of the euCHARisteo - the table of thanksgiving.

Is the height of my chara joy dependent on the depths of my eucharisteo thanks?

Eucharisteo - thanksgiving - always precedes the miracle.

Thanksgiving is inherent to a true salvation experience; thanksgiving is necessary to live the well, whole, fullest life.

There is sooooo much more I want to share about this chapter alone... but I would be typing all day!  My friends, get a copy of One Thousand Gifts... it truly is a must-read!  This book is deeply real, honest and thought-provoking... packed with Biblical truth!

There are days when I live the life in between, I don't want to anymore!  I want to see everything as charis grace, offer eucharisteo thanksgiving and experience the miracle of chara joy!

Will you join me in this journey, my friends?

Unwrapping more of His love in this world.

Act justly.  Love mercy.  Walk humbly with God!