In my attempt to pray in thanksgiving to God before I pray for anything else, today I was choosing to dwell on the love of God and how he has saved me.

It dawned on me in a fresh way today how God has given us all things, the day we came to know him.

Ephesians 1:3 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places."

The thought came to me of how, when a man is in love with a woman, there are times when he just can’t seem to be close enough to her, or express enough his feelings for her. It’s like emotion overwhelms him and he wants to pour himself out just so she knows she is loved.

And today it hit me that that’s what God was doing when he held nothing back. For joy he endured the cross. With shouts of joy he rejoices with all of heaven over us. And he gave us all things, all at once, not able to withhold anything good from those who have become his children through Christ.

Luke 15:22-24 

"But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate."