I recently received an email that linked to an article called “50 Economic Numbers That Are Almost Too Crazy To Believe”.  The article was a slide show with captions covering how badly (even worse than we think) the economy is performing ranging from unemployment to debt to homelessness to foreclosures.  The article made me think about the cares of this world stealing our joy…

So, to contrast this type of negative report, I am submitting to you my list of things that are awesome, give me joy and I am extremely thankful for.  This is Lisa’s list of “50 of my Favorite Things”.  (Disclaimer: this list is not all inclusive!)

9. colorful Christmas lights

1. relationship with God  2. my family  3. working on my daughter’s science project with her  4. daughter’s smile  5. friend’s children’s smiles  6. doggie  7. doggie barking at nothing  8. old Christmas decorations  9. colorful Christmas lights  10. neighbors that go crazy lighting up their houses  11. the smell of roasting garlic  12. bird that lives in a nest on my porch  13. planning to see family over the holidays  14. going for a walk  15. the smell of pine trees after a rain  16. music  17. Bing Crosby singing various Christmas carols  18. community Little Theater  19. playing guitar  20. looking at mountains  21. the sound of a running brook  22. listening to the middle school’s band concert  23. children excited about their performance  24. singing Christmas carols with my daughter and sister-in-law and laughing, laughing, laughing  25. listening to my daughter practice her flute  26. smelling the soup my husband is making for dinner  27. looking forward to having lunch with a friend 28.  watching a good – often old – movie  29. thinking about Christmas memories from the years past 30. volunteering  31. coming together with other believers to worship the Christ child  32. taking part as a volunteer on an Inheritance of Hope Legacy Retreat  33. studying how God made the human body  34. watching a little child play  35. watching a mother hold her baby  36. biking  37. the smell of fresh herbs  38. being safe and warm at night  38.  renaming truffles to fudgie-truffles because they came out too soft  39. making my own radio station on the internet  40. hearing my friend Marge’s laugh  41. seeing my brother-in-law, Chris, smile and wink at me  42. knowing that hard times on this earth are temporary  43. hiking new trails  44. the ‘Hallelujah Chorus’ 45. going for a run  46. the smell and sound of a wood fire  47. old friends  48. new friends  49.  vegetable juice  50. potatoes.

Ok.  Now it’s your turn to come up with a list of your 50 favorite things! Let’s face it, we all have things that are difficult in our lives and can bring us down.  It’s good to have a list like this ready.  Like the song from ‘The Sound of Music’ …“When the dog barks, when the bee stings, when I’m feeling sad,  I’ll simply remember my favorite things….” It sounds ultra-simplistic, but I believe there is truth to this.

Merry Christmas to you!  May your day be filled with joy, hope and the peace of Jesus.

Lisa