Pastel-colored thing-a-ma-bobs and have plastered themselves on the shelves of every major department store, and cottontails scamper about the chipper egg-laden displays. Lilly dresses are coming out of the woodwork, and derby sun hats are brought out of storage for the most joyful celebration of the year as we give praise to the KING of kings. Easter—is—here, can I get an amen? In this cheery time, I have decided to move the gratitude posts dedicated to my giants to next week and pause to give thanks to the one without whom none of my achievements would be possible—Jesus Christ. This post will be a little different because it’s coming to you raw and unfiltered and is at its core none other than a written prayer of gratitude.
To the Lord most high—look at what you’ve done. You have taken a child who has known you with her first breath and created a woman who still clings to you now. I have wandered and wondered, and yet you have constantly rerouted me back to your loving arms. You have never let my mistakes overtake my life and have always made way for me to come back from them. You are the only one to whom infinitives like “never” and “always” apply because you are infinite, steadfast, and unchanging in your mercy.
Look at how far you have brought my family and me. You pulled my lineage out of the mud that would soak the dirt floor under the wobbly kitchen table where my father and his brother once slept. You took that dreamer and gave him the integrity to fight for the American dream, raise his family out of poverty, and put his children in a position where they could climb higher still. I am weeks away from graduating from law school, and I am still in awe of all the doors you opened and the generational curses you broke to allow this to happen.
Lord, in this week, we remember your sacrifice. You allowed your son to be slaughtered like an Old Testament lamb for the posterity of eternity so that we could be saved—saved by grace—saved by mercy—saved by love. Out of your sacrifice, your glory magnified and cemented its place in history as the single, greatest miracle ever to occur. I give you honor that will never be enough and praise in humbled reverence at the grace in which you have drenched my life.
May your mercy endure forever. I proclaim your name above all names, holy, sanctified, and rightly deserving of every ounce of honor that I am unfit to give but lift regardless. May you be glorified. May my life be a reflection of your love. May the words that come out of my mouth be your words, and may my heart extend the same grace to others that you have shown me. Continue to mold me in your image every day, and let me never resist the changes regardless of how difficult they may be. May my life bring you honor and glory as I serve my fellow man with the gifts and talents you have given me. Blessed be your name.
Amen, Amen, Amen,
Isabella
