Eucharisteo... Joy. Grace. Thanksgiving.

'My counsel for you is simple and straightforward: 

Just go ahead with what you’ve been given. 

You received Christ Jesus, the Master; now live him. 

You’re deeply rooted in him. 

You’re well constructed upon him. 

You know your way around the faith. 

Now do what you’ve been taught. 

School’s out; quit studying the subject and start living it! 

And let your living spill over into thanksgiving.'

-Colossians 2:6-7 (the Message) 

Eucharisteo is a Greek word meaning thanksgiving, to be thankful. It envelopes the Greek root word charis meaning grace, & the derivative chara which is Greek for joy.

I love this. 

Almost two years ago now, I read Ann Voskamp's book One Thousand Gifts. This beautifully written book inspired me to slow down, take a look around me & begin to genuinely thank God for all of the amazing little gifts He has blessed me with. I encourage you to do this as well. Weather you choose to make a Thanksgiving Tree, take to journaling, or posting each day on Facebook... why not take the month of November to be grateful for all the little things. Begin to practice eucahristeo in your everyday life. 

Joy. Grace. Thanksgiving. 

Revelation 4:11 reminds that Jesus is worthy of our eucharisteo. He is worthy of all praise, glory, honor & power. He created us for this.   

"The practice of giving thanks...eucharisteo...this is the way we practice the presence of God, 

stay present to His presence, and it is always a practice of the eyes. 

We don't have to change what we see. 

Only the way we see." 

-Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts

I highly recommend One Thousand Gifts... pick it up at a bookstore near you... 

'In One Thousand Gifts, Ann invites you to embrace everyday blessings and embark on the transformative spiritual discipline of chronicling God's gifts. It's only in this expressing of gratitude for the life we already have, we discover the life we've always wanted ... a life we can take, give thanks for, and break for others. We come to feel and know the impossible right down in our bones: we are wildly loved---by God.' 

-World Magazine