In Week 4 of 52 Weeks of Gratefulness, I give thanks to God for a welcome visit.
Sunday night I receive a text, “Hey Uncle Paul, I was wondering if I can come over there tomorrow and we can watch the college football national championship together”
My nephew is a son to me. He is so dear to me. Of all the things he could be doing, to think he’d want to spend time with here with us…
It brings tears to my eyes, even now.
Because there’s no where I’d rather be.
I’m grateful.
#52WoG
In Week 3 of 52 Weeks of Gratefulness, I give thanks to God for our sons’ honor.
This past week, we celebrated our queen’s birthday.
Without my prompting, knowledge, or involvement, our sons coordinated all the moving pieces that made for a beautiful weekend. They demonstrated attentiveness and a keen understanding of their mother by cooking meals she loved.
We talked, laughed and enjoyed each other’s company all weekend long, interspersed with delicious food lovingly prepared.
It was already a gift to have our loved ones with us, but to have them near and loving on each other as a celebration of a beloved’s life… well, there’s no greater honor.
Seeing the men our children have become, as evidenced by how they honored the first lady of their life, fills me with great joy and hope.
I’m grateful.
#52WoG
Originally posted on Facebook on Thursday, January 2, 2025.
In Week 1 of 52 Weeks of Gratefulness, I give thanks to God for my new friend from the gym.
Me: "Hey, Nina!" (pronounced nigh-nuh) "Happy New Year!"
Nina: "Oh, hey. Guess what I've got? I finally brought you that fruit cake! I was thinking it would be too late in the day to see you, but here you are."
We walked to where she had it neatly sealed in a bag.
Me: "Wow. You brought this for me?!" I teased, "Am I going to get as drunk as I did last time?"
Nina: "You betcha!"
We laughed and hugged.
Nina makes the most delicious Rum Fruit Cake. They come carefully wrapped in soaked cheesecloth to keep it moist (and will put hair on your chest!).
Nina and I met at the gym by exchanging casual greetings. First smiles, then hellos, then conversations, then food, and now hugs.
I'm so thankful for the kindness that can be found all around us.
To not only be thought of, but to be planned for. It truly made my day.
I've been ministered to.
I'm grateful.
#52wog
Originally posted on Facebook on Tuesday, November 12, 2024.
On week 46 of 52 Weeks of Gratefulness, I give thanks to God for @[100006034025062:2048:Charles Lala Evans].
It is the 90s on the campus of @[100064455593599:2048:Mississippi State University]. As we would board the transit bus headed to a class, the driver, Mr. Evans would occasionally stop students and ask, "Would you mind if I took your picture?"
Amazingly, it was never creepy. His smile and spirit were genuine and disarming.
His approach suggested you were worthy of remembering.
As a black kid away from home on a predominately white campus, he'll never know how much that meant.
And to think, it was simply an extension of a tradition born out a beautiful love that he shared with his wife. There's something eternal about that.
I'm grateful.
#52WoG
It’s been a difficult season.
God’s getting me right this summer.
I am being prepared for the next assignment. He’s transforming me from glory to glory, more and more into the image of Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18).
I shouldn’t expect promotion without preparation.
Even Jesus learned obedience by the things that He suffered (Hebrews 5:8)
It’s been rough. I don’t like it.
But, I’m thankful.
In Week 5 of 52 Weeks Of Gratefulness, I give thanks to God for nickels.
I was around 6 years old when my dad was a student at Gammon Theological Seminary, and on this particular day I am on campus with him at the library.
I mimic my father. As he studied and wrote, I sat quietly and drew.
He then reached in his denim pocket and handed me fifty cents or so in nickels. They were for the copy machine. Copies were 5 cents a copy.
Once my masterpiece was complete, I’d walk intently (with excitement) to the copier, careful not to run. I’d stand in line to copy my work just like the grown-ups.
I don’t remember a single word being spoken but remember the feeling of having everything that I wanted or needed.
In that moment there was no where else I’d rather be.
I was just happy to be with my dad.
I’m so glad I had this moment with my father. It’s a beautiful memory that makes me smile to this day.
I’m grateful.
#52WoG
In Week 4 of 52 Weeks of Gratefulness, I give thanks for plenty.
I have been able to eat what I want and as much as I want for as long as I can remember.
“And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.”
—1 Tim 6:8
I have this and enough to share.
I’m grateful.
#52WoG
In week 3 of 52 Weeks of Gratefulness, I give thanks to God for a son and an eternal brother.
Marriage by the law gained me someone as dear as a son to me, my nephew, Devin Mabry, the son of my sister-in-law Gloria Harris.
Marriage to Christ by faith through the covenant of His blood has gained me a beloved and eternal brother, because Devin is now the son of God, the Father of our Lord and elder brother Jesus Christ.
He was just baptized.
Another brother, Jimmy Gant, said during a gathering, that the only thing you can take from this life to heaven is your loved ones.
I cannot express the deep gladness I have in knowing I will have someone so dear to me as Devin Mabry in this life and in the one to come.
Such joy is in my heart, pressed down, shaken together and running over.
Welcome, brother Devin.
I’m grateful.
#52WoG
In week 2 of 52 Weeks of Gratefulness, I give thanks to God for Jay Hurdle.
A young man with a prior felony has been working diligently to put his past behind him.
He’s holding down a job. His supervisor praised him as one of the best on staff. He’s taking care of his ailing mother. He’s showing up for his kids. He’s going straight from work to home.
He’s keeping his nose clean.
Then one day he decides to give someone he knows from around the way a ride, and they’re stopped by the police.
He has a felony, his rider has a felony, but what the young man doesn’t know is, the rider has a gun.
The rider throws the gun in the car and flees.
The rider escapes. The young man doesn’t.
Now he’s facing 10 years for a poor decision made in a split second about something as trivial as a passenger.
You’d think his efforts to improve his situation would be taken into consideration, but that’s not how the machine works, especially for certain categories of prior offenses and for certain people. All the system sees is your prior. It was without compassion.
But, Jay Hurdle was compassionate.
The young man was without direction, the public defender seemed indifferent, overwhelmed by his case load, and the young man couldn’t really afford to pay for his own defense.
Of all the lawyers we reached out to, Jay Hurdle was the only one to return the call.
Not only that, he arranged to meet with the young man, freely sharing hours of precious billable time to a complete stranger from whom he had no hope of recouping it.
The young man was terrified and Jay Hurdle gave of his time and expertise to help him gain some sense of direction.
I don’t know Jay Hurdle well, but I know the effect he’s had on our community very well.
Of the community service organizations and non-profits I’ve worked with, I was constantly brushing up against his work, very often him having donated it.
It seems that whenever I hear about something good happening in our community, I hear his and his wife, Cate Van Halsema’s name.
They are remarkably human and have given themselves to the betterment of our community, including in that people who others would omit.
I share this experience with Jay Hurdle because probably no one else in the world knows he did it.
And, if he did this, how much more?
I didn’t know Jay Hurdle well, but I know this is who he is: a neighbor the kind that Jesus spoke of.
I was grieved to hear of his passing.
There’s a Celebration of Jay Hurdle’s Life happening at the upstairs of Restaurant Tyler at 5:30 PM today.
If you’ve felt the effect of his life, I encourage you to carry it and pass it along, especially to Cate Van Halsema and his loved ones during this incredibly difficult season.
He is a man #duehonor.
He made our community better.
I’m grateful.
#52WoG
In Week 1 of 52 Weeks of Gratefulness, I give thanks for a Son’s Heart.
Someone was in need, having lost their home’s much used washer and dryer in the same day.
They were hours away, a new washer and dryer set would have to be picked up, the old ones would have to be removed and the new installed. It would be a challenging job for just one person.
As my wife and I were working through how to help, my son Chris volunteers, “Dad, I’ll go.”
He gives up an entire Saturday that are typically cherished and fiercely protected by college students to help someone else.
I can scarcely think of a moment where I was more proud.
My prayer and greatest hope is that I could ever make God feel the way my son made me feel that day.
I’m proud of you, Chris.
I love you.
I’m grateful.
#52WoG