The Praise Thread

[ClaecElric4God]

So when I first came to CAA I was surprised this wasn't a thing. I'm starting to understand a bit more now that I've been here awhile, but that doesn't make it okay. So I finally got the initiative to do this. And maybe it'll die in the first few minutes and never be heard of again, but I figured it's worth a shot, and I'm gonna do what I can to keep it going. And if we as "Christians" can't find anything to be thankful for........ . . . . . . Yeah. And I know a lot of us are tough cool stoic people who only ever post deep philosophical stuff or snide remarks about random irrelevant stuff. But I figured this would be a chance for people to be out of character and just kind of...brag up the God we serve. So don't be shy, I promise you won't be uncool for thinking God is awesome.

So here's how this works. The title is pretty self-explanatory. Instead of prayer requests, this is a thread to post something awesome God has done/is doing in your life, an answer to prayer, or just shout out about how great God is. Maybe there's something you've been taking for granted and you realize that, wow, it's a big deal that God gave me this. Or maybe you just want to throw out something you're thankful for. And don't let this thread just go down one of these tracks! It's open for anything that involves giving God glory, whether for something in your life or in the world, something in the past or in the present, a continuing thing or a one-time occurence. Let's do some praising, people!

And now that I've rambled and ranted, I guess I'll start. I just want to praise God for giving me the victory over some struggles in my life. When I was a younger teenager, there were a few years where I seriously battled depression, for no apparent reason. It got downright impossible to enjoy living at points, no matter how much I tried to just appreciate the things God gave me and my life as a born-again Christian. But at the age of 14, kneeling under a sink in a broken down hotel room in a third world country, God gave me a very definitive victory over that depression. Did that mean I suddenly never got depressed or struggled with those things again? Psh, no. But I had a new understanding of who God was and was able to place my trust in Him more fully, and now when those struggles come I know I can lean on Him and give them over to Him. And I thank God for pulling me out of the mess that could have ruined my life had it gone on the way it was for too many years.

And I want to thank God for my salvation. Because...wow. It's a big deal. I forget sometimes just how big of a deal it is that Jesus Christ died for my sins, and that as undeserving as I am, God saw fit to forgive me and save me from the wages of sin. I can't thank Him enough and I don't ever want to forget that He has no obligation to give me anything good, and yet He blesses me abundantly. And I praise His holy name for that.

[black & white angel]

My sister is going to have a baby! Thats definitely something I'm thanking God for!

[Mullet Death]

Let me take a post to thank God for the little things. I'm usually quite unappreciative of things big and small, so...

Praise God for all the little things that make life seem worth living from time to time. Praise God for those same moments that turn my attention outward, away from my depression and self-pity-- to the smiles and puzzled looks of babies and teasing of the elderly. Praise God for the occasional chance to help out people down on their luck.

Praise God for hot fudge with brownies and custard after a hot day of fun in the water. Praise Him for clean sheets and plenty of pillows and K-On! and Fairy Tail to curl up with.

Praise God for seeing Him reflected in unexpected people and things, even in the secular arts of manga and anime.

Praise God for opportunities to learn new things about kanji and the Japanese language.

There's many, many things I'm forgetting, and I wish I could offer better detail, but hopefully there's a lot more posts to come. God continues to offer more even when I despair and utterly give up. For a few days, I have seen Him in little things again, many of which may not be so little after all. I'm grateful for this- but like I said earlier, I'm usually not grateful at all-- just the opposite. I pray this upward trend continues, and that I continue to meet God in unexpected places, through the good and the bad.

[Okami]

Well, today is my best friend's birthday (You see that 'Kitsune' at the bottom of the page in the birthdays list? That's her! )
I definitely praise God for fourteen years of friendship! (Plus she was the one who led me to Christ nine years ago! )

Praise be to Jesus that my mental health is finally, FINALLY beginning to stabilize!

And I have a huge unspoken praise! Details will come when I'm allowed to share~

[SincerelyAnomymous]

I would like to praise God that my mental health is slowly improving!

[Okami]

And I have a huge unspoken praise! Details will come when I'm allowed to share~

I'm engaged!!!~ <3

[ClaecElric4God]

I want to praise God for my job. Where to start...Well, I'm hoping to be in school in Japan by the fall semester of next year, as some of you know. But the biggest thing in the way of that is finances. I wasn't sure how God was planning on providing that, since "going to school" isn't really missions, so I couldn't raise support from churches and, well, I'm not abundantly wealthy. But I found a job opening for what seems like a fairly above average while job-hunting online, back in December. I applied there as well as a few other places and didn't think much of it. I figured "I'm not going to make enough at a minimum wage job to support myself, so God will have to do something crazy, but in the meantime I might as well stay busy." Well, two months down the road I hadn't heard anything and assumed it was over. But then I got a call for an initial interview, after which I was told they'd get back with me. Well, another couple months down the road, I assumed that was the end of it again, and I was sort of frustrated, but in the meantime I got a good ol' part-time job at a grocery store. Well, due to either a discrepancy or some confusion on my part, I got an email from the company I applied at letting me know that they thought I was great, but they didn't need me. I'd kind of staked a lot on getting that job, in spite of trying to convince myself that it wasn't going to happen, so when I actually got clarification that it wasn't going to happen, I was...really upset. I struggled with it a couple days and was like "God, why didn't that work? What do You want me to do?" But I finally gave it up, threw my hands up, and said "Okay, Lord, if that wasn't your will, then I'll just keep being patient and trust You. Because I know You want me in Japan, so it'll happen." And it was literally like...two days later that I got another phone call from the company to offer me the job. Turns out the email had been about a different job I applied for to the same company. But it's truly awesome how God worked that out, because it was like He needed me to give up, let go, and trust Him wholly instead of relying on myself, before He was ready to give me what I wanted. Anyways, a few more months down the road, and I've been working here for 5 weeks now. And I can't get over how awesome God is. Opportunities like this don't just present themselves. I can attribute my position to nothing less than the grace of God, because this job is such an incredible blessing. The wage ended up being a fair bit higher than I originally thought, and it's a full-time job with benefits, located about 5 miles away from me. Lord-willing, it will easily get me through at least my first year of college, at which point once again I'm intending to lean wholly on God to provide. But I just want to praise God with all of my heart for this job. It amazes me, when I really think about it, how I got where I am. God's awesome and I hope I never get over it.

[Sheenar]

And I have a huge unspoken praise! Details will come when I'm allowed to share~

I'm engaged!!!~ <3

Yay!!! Congratulations, my friend!!! I am so excited for you!!



Today, I want to praise God for my new aide (my aide of a year and a half had to leave at the end of June for personal reasons --I finally found a new aide and she started last week). She works so hard! And is so kind.

I also thank God that I still have a job (very part-time). And for the dear friend who surprised me by bringing me meals that she and others at her church made for me (they even made them allergy friendly!) That was (and is) a HUGE blessing!!

[SilverToast]

I'm engaged!!! <3

Congratulations!

Thanks for making this thread claec!

Praise God for the good mood I'm in now.

Before I moved back to where I used to live, I wasn't sure of what I was going back to.
I was leaving some good friends and some great new family I've haven't met before behind.
It seemed like I was going backwards in life all the way to nothing.

I was wrong though.
Some old friends remembered me even though I've failed to keep in touch. I'm back with some family again.
I'm enjoying the immense sunlight in the west coast. I've missed it so much.
Lately, I have been having a string of good luck and good blessings.

I'm not sure what I did to deserve it, but I thank God for this great season.

[ClaecElric4God]

I want to praise God for an awesome weekend. After jumping through a billion hoops that made it seem impossible, I was able to take a trip to visit two of the closest friends I've ever had, and finally meet them face to face for the first time. It was a blessing, and I can't thank Him enough for it. I had a fantastic time, really had my eyes opened to a lot of things, and had a blessed time with a group of people who truly love God. I'm truly spoiled rotten by the grace of God.

And I want to thank God that He doesn't show me His master plan. That isn't easy to say, because I've struggled a lot with it lately. But...not knowing what He's going to do next, or what's going to happen, gives me the opportunity to lean on Him and leave my well-being in His hands. And it gives me hope. That no matter what, no matter how horrible things may seem, God's in control, and He has my best interest at heart. Not knowing how things are going to turn out is hard, but I know He knows what He's doing, and I take comfort in that. Things will work out, because God is awesome. I have hope as long as He's with me, and I know He'll never leave me.

[Sheenar]

Grateful for the opportunity to have a vendor table at an upcoming women's event at my church in October to sell the jewelry I make.

[ClaecElric4God]

Thank God, my sleep schedule finally seems to be figuring itself out! Had a very good night at work last night, wasn't tired or fatigued at all, in spite of working through the tail end of the cold/flu I've been battling all weekend. The only way I can explain it is God is good, even in the little things.

[LastLfan]

I just wanted to praise God that last night, I got my first college acceptance letter.

[Anirac]

My mind just goes "WHOOOOOSH" every time I try to find something for which to praise God. "Everything" would maybe be a simple way to do it, but it's too simple! I don't even know where to start. This world, from its atoms to its core, all that is alive and green, all that is upon the face of this planet and floating above it, close to the border with nothingness, stars and galaxies burning, colliding, exploding, burning... everything! Memories, interactions, relationships, feelings, all that seems to be worked, crafted, guided by the hands of our all-powerful, all-knowing Creator. I can't pinpoint one thing. Have you ever admired a painting in a gallery or museum, up close? I can notice the details that are closest to me, such as a blade of grass, brush strokes, the texture of the canvas. But I merely notice those; I am in awe because of the entire painting, how everything blends together perfectly. Being alive here, now, feels very much like being immersed in the Master Piece, the ultimate Creation. I can't even step back and take a look from another perspective, which is what we do with paintings; I am a detail in this painting too. I am immersed in, surrounded and made by details. A sunset may look like a painting, but if I lay down on the grass to appreciate the colours in the sky, I can also see the beauty (yes, there is beauty) in grass, weeds, bugs, dirt. I can look at my own arm, move it and awe at the complexity of my body and its systems. I am a beautifully and skilfully worked detail in this work of art which is Creation.

Hm, come to think of it, maybe I do have a particular something for which I want to praise God: opening my eyes to His greatness. Had it not been for His mighty hand working to reach my heart, I would have never noticed all of this I just described.

OK, I know it might have sounded like I'm high or something similar, but I am very lucid. Just overwhelmed have been like this since I've been converted, and I do not mind if this buzz lasts forever.

[Wolfsong]

...thank you God for this thread...I needed the reminder to remember the little things...
I've got a good job, with a bunch of fairly good people.

My injured foot may finally be starting to heal so I can take class again.

And I just heard back from an old friend, who once upon a time wanted to kill herself, and she seems so much better now.
Thank you Lord. Thank you so much.

[ClaecElric4God]

Praise God for a good night at work. I woke up sick as a dog with a flu yesterday and thought I was gonna have to call off work. Slept a couple more hours and woke up perfectly fine and had one of my best nights at work. God is too good to me.

[ClaecElric4God]

I never said this and I should have, thanks so much for your post, Anirac! It's a huge encouragement.

I want to thank God for a renewed determination and motivation to serve Him. I've gone through a rather spiritual dry spot these last few months that hasn't been very fun, and for awhile I felt very far away from Him. But recently I've discovered a new desire to grow close to Him, and I can't thank Him enough for that. Praise God for a purpose in life!

[Okami]

I'm getting married in a week!
It's only been by the grace of God that we've been thriving - and our apartment is almost fully furnished. I am astounded!!

[ClaecElric4God]

Praise the Lord for mended relationships. A relationship that was completely turned on its head and that I thought was completely irreparably beyond hope has been scooped up in the hands of mercy, and by the grace of God He's healed a wound that I thought was destined to fester and die. I can't thank Him enough, and I know that I don't deserve it at all. His mercy endures forever.

[mysngoeshere56]

I didn't see this thread until now, but before I say anything, I'd like to say this is an excellent idea.

And my praise is that my migraines are finally gone! And mom's second graduate class is starting, so she's closer to getting her certificate! Things are tough, but might as well continue to be thankful for the good.

[mdmrn]

I am daily thankful for my health and that of my wife & four children. I am always thankful the Lord entrusted them unto me. Praise the Lord Jesus Christ for His blessings and His trust.