Little Daily Graces Paperback

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Little Daily

Graces

A Celebration of Thankfulness

A HELEN STEINER RICE ® Product © 2014 Barbour Publishing, Inc. All poems © Helen Steiner Rice Foundation Fund, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cincinnati Museum Center.

All rights reserved.

Published under license from the Helen Steiner Rice Foundation Fund, LLC. Written and compiled by Rebecca Currington in association with Snapdragon Groupsm, Tulsa, OK. Print ISBN 978-1-62416-129-2 eBook Editions: Adobe Digital Edition (.epub) 978-1-63058-953-0 Kindle and MobiPocket Edition (.prc) 978-1-63058-954-7 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted for commercial purposes, except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without written permission of the publisher.

Scripture quotations marked niv are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. niv®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked nlt are taken from the Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked kjv are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

Scripture quotations marked msg are from THE MESSAGE. Copyright © by Eugene H. Peterson 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Published by Barbour Books, an imprint of Barbour Publishing, Inc., P.O. Box 719, Uhrichsville, Ohio 44683, www.barbourbooks.com Our mission is to publish and distribute inspirational products offering exceptional value and biblical encouragement to the masses.

Printed in the United States of America.

Little Daily

Graces

A Celebration of Thankfulness HELEN STEINER RICE

A n Impr int of B ar bour P ublishing, Inc.

Contents Abundance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Blessing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Faith. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Comfort. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Life. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Kindness. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Forgiveness. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Creation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Trust. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 Hope. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99 Love. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109 Peace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 Prayer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129 Friendship. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139 Joy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149 Strength. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159 Poem Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173 About the Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.

1 Chronicles 16:34 niv

Abundance

All humanity finds shelter in the shadow of your wings.

You feed them from the abundance of your own house, letting them drink from your river of delights.

Psalm 36:7–8 nlt

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What Really Matters Abundance is a word most often used in regard to riches and possessions. But true abundance comes when we realize we are rich in those things that really matter. The love of family and friends. The physical beauty of the world around us. And most wonderful of all, the access we have been given to God Almighty, the Creator of all things and our heavenly Father. He allows us to know Him, live in relationship with Him, offer our prayers to Him, and learn from Him. We can rely on His rock-solid promises, and even call ourselves His children because Jesus has opened the door for us and called us His brothers and sisters. We need not fear, for He watches over us. We lack nothing because He is our Provider.

Thank You, heavenly Father, for the abundance You have poured out on our lives.

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Thank You, God, for Everything Thank You, God, for everything— the big things and the small— For every good gift comes from God, the Giver of them all, And all too often we accept without any thanks or praise The gifts God sends as blessings each day in many ways.

And so at this time we offer up a prayer To thank You, God, for giving us a lot more than our share.

First, thank You for the little things that often come our way—

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The things we take for granted but don’t metion when we pray, The unexpected courtesy, the thoughtful, kindly deed, A hand reached out to help us in the time of sudden need.

Oh make us more aware, dear God, of little daily graces That come to us with sweet surprise from never-dreamed-of places.

Then thank You for the miracles we are much too blind to see, And give us new awareness of our many gifts from Thee.

And help us to remember that the key to life and living Is to make each prayer a prayer of thanks and each day a day of thanksgiving.

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A Heart Full of Thanksgiving Everyone needs someone to be thankful for, And each day of life we are aware of this more, For the joy of enjoying and the fullness of living Are found only in hearts that are filled with thanksgiving.

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In His Image God’s Word says we are unlike any of His other creations, for He created us in His own image.

We are able to know Him and see things as He sees them, hear things as He hears them. We are aware of the abundant beauty around us. We see His hand in the blossoming of a flower, the rippling of a stream, the innocence of a child.

We are able to comprehend the abundance of His goodness and His love for us. Yes, we are like Him. We are able to appreciate all He has done for us and with thankful hearts offer up our praises. Even in times of difficulty, He covers us with His hand and soothes us with His abundant comfort and consolation. Thank You, heavenly Father, for creating us with an awareness of Your abundant blessings.

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Beyond Our Asking More than hearts can imagine or minds comprehend, God’s bountiful gifts are ours without end.

We ask for a cupful when the vast sea is ours, We pick a small rosebud from a garden of flowers, We reach for a sunbeam but the sun still abides, We draw one short breath but there’s air on all sides Whatever we ask for falls short of God’s giving, For His greatness exceeds every facet of living

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And always God’s ready and eager and willing To pour out His mercy, completely fulfilling All of man’s needs for peace, joy, and rest, For God gives His children whatever is best.

Just give Him a chance to open His treasures, And He’ll fill your life with unfathomable pleasures— Pleasures that never grow worn out and faded And leave us depleted, disillusioned, and jaded— For God has a storehouse just filled to the brim With all that man needs, if we’ll only ask Him.

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A Favorite Recipe Take a cup of kindness, mix it well with love, Add a lot of patience and faith in God above, Sprinkle very generously with joy and thanks and cheer— And you’ll have lots of “angel food” to feast on all the year.

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Blessing

“I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing.�

Ezekiel 34:26

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Dancing in the Rain Not only does God promise to bless us, He says that His blessings will pour down on us and all around us. Showers as cool and refreshing as the early spring rain. Blessings to our left, to our right, before us, and behind us. Even in our troubles, we receive the blessing of God’s comfort and loving-kindness. Like a loving Father, God delights in showering us with blessing. Too often, though, our disobedience and the guilt that follows serve to deflect His blessings like an open umbrella. Instead, let us be quick to ask for forgiveness and quick to receive His mercy. Let us lift our hands and allow His goodness to wash over us. Thank You, heavenly Father, for opening the heavens and inviting us to dance in Your showers of blessing.

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A Thankful Heart Take nothing for granted, for whenever you do, The joy of enjoying is lessened for you.

For we rob our own lives much more than we know When we fail to respond or in any way show Our thanks for the blessings that daily are ours— The warmth of the sun, the fragrance of flowers, The beauty of twilight, the freshness of dawn,

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The coolness of dew on a green velvet lawn, The kind little deeds so thoughtfully done, The favors of friends and the love that someone Unselfishly gives us in a myriad of ways, Expecting no payment and no words of praise.

Oh, great is our loss when we no longer find A thankful response to things of this kind.

For the joy of enjoying and the fullness of living Are found in the heart that is filled with thanksgiving.

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Showers of Blessings Each day there are showers of blessings sent from the Father above, For God is a great, lavish giver, and there is no end to His love. . .

And His grace is more than sufficient, His mercy is boundless and deep, And His infinite blessings are countless, and all this we’re given to keep If we but seek God and find Him and ask for a bounteous measure Of this wholly immeasurable offering from God’s inexhaustible treasure. . .

For no matter how big man’s dreams are, God’s blessings are infinitely more, For always God’s giving is greater than what man is asking for.

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We Are Thankful If you have children, you know the immense joy it brings to your heart when you see their happiness. Even greater is your joy when that child remembers to stop and say thank you. The same is true for our heavenly Father. He does not indulge us, but it is in His nature to bless us in ways both great and small, expected and unexpected. And when we come to Him and offer our thanks, it must bring joy to His heart. Even in our darkest hour, there is always something for which we can say thanks. It should always be in our hearts to bless God as He has blessed us. Thank You, heavenly Father, for blessing us with Your presence in times of darkness and times of light.

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