One Thousand Gifts: A Lesson in Slowing Down

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In a world where our agendas are jammed packed and we jump from one activity to the next, it is hard to stop and smell the flowers. I have read so many stories recently about slowing down, taking in life. But how do you actually do that? How can we stop and appreciate the joy that surrounds us when we are constantly buried in our busyness?

One_thousand_giftsMy Bible study group is currently reading through the book One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are by Ann Voskamp. In this book, Ann describes her journey in finding joy and appreciating the gifts around her to help her find joy, even during the most difficult times. Throughout her story, Ann writes down the gifts she sees around her. From clean sheets smelling of wind to the sound of the windmills humming during the day, she documents what she sees as beauty in her present moment.

Ann realizes that she sees the beauty because she has taught herself to look for it, to find the joy around her. She learns time is a constant and cannot be changed. It is ever moving.

Time is a relentless river. It rages on, a respecter of no one. And this, this is the only way to slow time: When I fully enter time’s swift current, enter into the current moment with the weight of all my attention, I slow the torrent with the weight of me all here. I can slow the torrent by being all here.  ~ Ann Voskamp

Giving thanks and appreciating the beauty helps us be all in.

I cannot stop time from moving. I cannot slow down my girls growing up. All I can do is jump into my life – two feet in the river – and be all in. Slow the current of my life by being present and looking for the beauty.

I have since started my own gifts journal, capturing the beauty in my life, the current moments. Thanking God for what I can see and that I have slowed down the current, even just for a moment. From the smell of the lake to quiet mornings before the sun rises, I take it all in. I have begun to notice more around me. The sounds of birds chirping early in the morning. The deer quietly standing on the side of the road. The shapes of the white clouds against the blue sky.

AJ_One_Thousands_GiftsI have also been able to sink in to the moments with the girls. The gentle curl that falls on Amelia’s forehead. The sound of the girls giggling together. Tessa’s imagination running wild during a story. The way the girls get excited when my husband comes home. Their content faces while sleeping soundly in warm beds.

Clouds_one_Thousands_GiftsFor each gift I document and each day that I settle further into the moment, I can feel life becoming fuller and more complete. I am able to push through the busyness of each day and hold on to the small moments that make my life beautiful. Time may not be slowing down, but I know now that is not what it’s about. It is about enjoying the time that I have, seeing the beauty in each moment, and grasping at the fullness of the life around me.

What gifts do you see surrounding you today?

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