"One Thousand Gifts" (Book Nineteen)

Title: One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are.

Author: Ann VosKamp

Pages: 233

Published: 2010

Buy the Book: Amazon

This was an unexpected book. I put it on my wish list a while back when a person I knew once upon a time posted that she wanted to read it. I knew nothing about the book, but the title struck a cord in me. Then for my birthday my friend Steph and her husband gave me this book.

This is when I finally read the back and found out that it was a religious book. I should have known. Now at this point my aunt would probably say that this was a sign from God that I needed to read this book to bring "back my faith". I'm not sure it did that, but it did inspire me to try and be a better human.

I'm not going to go into the sorted details of my relationship with religion or God. However, all one needs to know is that I'm not a give everything to God type of person and that is really what this book was about. Giving fear, hurt, loneliness, helplessness etc over to God.

Basically this is the story of Ann and her search to find God. It all begins with a challenge to write down one thousand things to be grateful for everyday.

"243. Clean sheets smelling like wind
244. Hot oatmeal tasting like home
245 Bare toes in early light" (pg 55)

So I've decided to take up the challenge too. I can use a little reminding of the everyday things to be grateful. I also found the chapter on time to be very inspiring. In this chapter Ann quotes her pastor.

"Being in a hurry. Getting to the next thing without fully entering the thing in front of me. I cannot think of a single advantage I've ever gained from being in a hurry. But a thousand broken and missed things, tens of thousands, lie in the wake of all the rushing... Through all that haste" (pg 65)

I know exactly what the pastor was talking about. I am constantly in a hurry from one place to another. Never taking the time to stop and smell the roses. Now I'm thirty years old and I cannot remember the last time I slowed down and just lived. So that is another lesson that Ann has taught me.

At this point I probably could have put the book down and went on with the rest of my life. But I need to finish what I start, especially when it comes to books. The rest of the book is about her finding God. Giving God her anxiety, giving thanks even when things are bad, and humbling her self.

All in all this was a very well written book. It will inspire anyone, even the non-believer. I'm not sure if I'll now start giving things over to God, but I am going to start giving thanks. Everyone should remember to give thanks everyday.

As always, I appreciate your comments or book recommendations. ~Dianna