Thanksgiving!

Today is Thanksgiving. I'm not American and we don't do Thanksgiving here but how I wish we did- we've so many things to be thankful for. Which got me thinking, what am I thankful for?

Salvation- Having been a Christain since I was about 5 sometimes I just take this forgranted, but when we truely sit back and look at what we're saved from and the fact that Jesus took our punishment just because He loved us we should liev every moment in thankfulness to Him.

My Husband- Apart from my salvation, being married is the best thing ever to happen to me. I love Trev so so so much. I really thought that I was never going to get married and then one day he just appeared and next thing we were married, God has amazing plans and i'm so thankful to Him for bringing us together. He is the best husband EVER!

Our House- I love our house so much. We looked at some awful places before we found our house and I was beginning to think we were never going to get anywhere nice for waht we could afford, but we did!

My Parents- Sometimes my parents used to drive me crazy when I was younger because I felt that they were so strict, but now i'm so thankful to them for how they brought us up and what an amazing example they were of a godly marriage and life. I am so thankful that my mum stayed at home to look after us and for all the support my parents were and still are to me.

Our Family- My family seems to have grown loads in the past few years through marriage and babies, i'm so thankful for them all, sometimes I miss the nosiness of the dinner table but i'm so thankful for all the fun times growing up and the fact that when were all gathered now it's just as noisy. I'm so thankful that, as much as I love my brothers that in the end God gave me a sister too!

Our Church- I really am thankful for my church, that it preaches the truth. I'm thankful for all those who taught me in Sunday School and Youth Meetings and for my dad and his preaching at church.

Friends- I'm thankful for my friends, most of whom i've known for ever. I'm thankful for their encouragement and all the fun and laughter they provide.

Jobs- I'm thankful that i've a job and Trev does at the minute anyway. Sometimes I really really don't enjoy it but when so many people are out of work i'm thankful that we're able to make ends meet.

My Education- I'm so thankful that I live in a country where good education is free. I'm thankful for both my primary and Grammar schools and for the fact that at Grammar school there were so many christians pupils and teachers. I'm also thankful that I was able to go to University, even though I never use my degree now i'm thankful that God gave me the opportunity to study!

Our Freedom- I'm thankful that we live in a free country. There are trials are christians are becoming increasingly unpopular but we can still meet together with other believers without fear, tell others about our faith and follow Christ.

So much to be thankful for and I could go on and talk about the beautiful Northern Ireland or books but I really must stop!

Books for Little Historians

Growing up I was a bit of a church history nerd. I loved doing my Sunday School project every year about a missionary from the past. My favourite class ever at school was Early Church History. I loved it. When I got to University I took two first year modules in it and was so excited about final year when I could choose to focus on Church History in my Ancient History degree, but then the lecturer took a sabbatical and I ended up doing Athenian Law. True story and yes it's as boring as it sounds. I love the stories of those who stood for their faith in the early days, through to the reformation and those who took the gospel throughout the world more recently. I've always loved getting biographies when I was younger and recently there have been a few books bringing these stories to life for really little ones...

Little Lights Series

Published by Christian Focus

These 8 books tell the stories of 8 people who have influenced the church or gone to share the gospel in a far off corner of the world. Without a doubt these are my favourite in biographical books for little ones. They are colourful and on one page have a more detailed story while on the opposite page the same story simplified for the very young. The series is broad, including John Calvin, Martin Luther, Helen Roseveare, Amy Carmichael, Hudson Taylor, George Muller, Hudson Taylor and David Livingstone. I particularly like the ones on Calvin and Luther as these men played such a significant role in the shaping of our theology and it's never too young to learn about them.

Heroes of the Faith Series

Published by Banner of Truth

I've tried to really like this series, I really have but I don't know how I feel about them really. They have amazing potential but somewhere along the line I feel they've missed the target. To be fair, I've never actually tested them out on a child but I've no idea what age they're for. They have a lot of text but yet their layout is that of a large picture book and it looks a little 1980's in style. The content is good though!

The Church History ABC's

Published by Crossway

This is a really colourful book which covers 26 people from church history, starting with Augustine, it has one individual for each letter of the alphabet. It is a really fun book which although not providing a lot of information on each character provides an introduction to many who the child my want to learn more about.