In EVERYTHING – Give Thanks

I stopped by a friend’s home a few days ago. Understandably, she is distraught because her high-school-senior-son is missing out on his final year of baseball, as well as missing out on his Senior Prom. And she went on to feel sorry for those college students who are delayed in their graduations and other friends who are having to cancel or postpone their weddings. I get it. It’s a difficult and disappointing time for so many.

I responded to her by telling her about my morning “aha”. I know this is TMI (too much information), but it’s my truth. I say: “I am sitting on my toilet this morning. I am pooping. I say to God: ‘Thank you so much for my system working so good. Thank you for this toilet. Thank you for the water in this toilet. Thank you for this bathroom that has a door on it and it’s indoors. Thank you for water to drink. Thank you for my home. Thank you for my lights. Thank you for technology. Thank you for YOU, God – Who promises to never leave me or forsake me.’”

She got the picture. And, so do you. It’s expressing gratitude for what we do have. It’s seeing the bigger picture that this all will pass and we’ll be telling our grandchildren about the 2020 pandemic. We will talk about the faithfulness of God Who brought us through while telling them about those who got very sick and many who lost their lives. This time will go down in the history books.

Yes, we are inconvenienced. Yes, we are missing spending times with friends and family. Yes, we miss going to church and concerts and sports games and restaurants and previously planned events. Yes, we want to go back to “business as usual”. Yes, we want our “normal” to be normal again.

But, instead of what we don’t have or what we don’t get to do – let’s consider what we do have. So, what to do when we don’t know what to do? We count our blessings – even name them one by one. I mean it. Since you’re at home with your kiddos – why not play the “I am so blessed” game. “You have one minute to tell us what you’re thankful for!” I did the exercise. I gave myself one minute, using my phone app. Ready! Set! Go!

I heard my dishwasher running. I wrote down "dishwasher". My eyes went to my piano that Papa played, I play, and our grandson plays. I wrote down "piano". I was seeing -- I wrote down "my eyes", and hearing -- "my ears"; I was sitting in a comfy chair -- "my furniture"; I saw my computer -- I wrote down "computer and internet". I glanced over at my refrigerator -- I wrote down "refrigerator".

When we express gratitude, rather than being bugged and annoyed by this time when we can’t do anything about it in the natural, we can express to God how thankful we are for what we do have. A grateful heart sees each day as a gift. Thankful people focus less on what they lack and more on the privileges and blessings they have. The grateful heart is like a magnet that collects reasons for gratitude -- for the paper clip to hold those pages together; for the milk in our cereal; for the song that soothes us; for the clock we hear ticking; for the light that turns on; for the car that takes us to the OPEN grocery store. Thank you, Lord!

May this time of uncertainty and inconvenience, become a time of really being thankful people for what we do have. May we choose gratitude as a habit that we choose daily as a way of life – even after this crisis is over. May we be overwhelmed with the beauty and abundance of all God has given us!

God is Good....All the Time. All the Time....God is Good.

Some years ago, the phrase "God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good" became popular. It was given in a call-and-response pattern. Our African Associate Pastor, in his beautiful African accent, begins every message he gives with “God is good!” And, he waits until we reply “All the time!” Then he says “All the time…..” And we reply, “God is good!” He also closes each of his messages with the same words. He is impressing upon us the goodness of God. And, since he came to us about five months ago, we have become more enthused as we raise our voices, with huge smiles on our faces and joyously declare those words. We love it, and we love him! And, you know what? The gooder (that really should be a word) God gets to us!

Yesterday morning I woke up with such gratitude and said “God, you’re so good to me!” Then that phrase came to my mind and as I was scrolling through my Facebook timeline, a friend posted this photo below. The message was coming through, loud and clear. In spite of everything going on in our lives -- the good, the bad and the ugly -- God is so good. It seemed God wanted me to remind us of that today!

I’m sure there are those who roll their eyes when they hear someone say that phrase – especially when they’re going through tough times. And, I’ll be honest with you, there are times when I’m thinking “What’s up with this or that, God?” and then when I say, “God, you're so good all the time", I am putting my faith and trust in Him. No doubt, there are those who look at us hands-waving, Bible-toting, energy-flailing, do-gooders and saying “God is good”, ask their selves “What nut tree did those nuts fall from?” And they may even ask “Why can’t I say that phrase as energetically as they do?”

An old song “Give Thanks” by Don Moen comes to my mind. The chorus goes “Give thanks with a grateful heart, give thanks to the Holy One, give thanks because He’s given Jesus Christ, His Son." Those words may swirl in people’s heads because they question “How can I give thanks with a grateful heart when I am going through so much turmoil? And, the Holy One? “How could He be holy and allow so much evil and corruption to run rampant in this world we live in?” I can only imagine how hard it must be for those who don’t know God and sense His great love for them that they find it hard to focus on how holy He is, but that doesn’t change the fact that He IS holy. Despite anyone’s doubts, His love endures forever and He is so understanding of all of our human doubts.

May I suggest that those of us who say “God is good all the time” have captured the heart of God and it’s not because of all of His hand-outs to us? Even when we don’t have a grateful heart because things just aren’t going our way, we can still look at the holiness of our God. The fact remains that God loves us all the time despite the doubts we all have from time to time.

Maybe today you’re struggling with giving thanks with a grateful heart, and saying “God is good all the time”, then I urge you to turn your focus on the Holy One. If you’re unable to do that, then just remember that He has given His only Son for us, despite the fact that He knew we would have doubts in His holiness. Go ahead and be human. Be upset about all the bad stuff that is happening in life but remember God’s love for you will never leave you – in fact, it will endure forever. We can all be thankful for that. God is good. All the time. All the time. God is good!

"Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his steadfast love endures forever." Psalm 136:26

Thankful to "Thank" My Way Through Thanksgiving

It's Thanksgiving week when we amp up the hearts of gratitude for the many blessings in our lives. This morning I woke up and......oh, let's begin there. I woke up. I got out of bed. Oh, I'm so thankful for my bed and a good night's sleep. I got out of bed. Oh, I got out of bed all on my own. I went to the restroom. Oh, I could go to the restroom all on my own, and my "plumbing" worked.

Whew! I think you can see what I mean. Hearts of gratitude START with being thankful for each detail of our lives. Of course "the usual" -- thankful for God, family, friends, home, car, clothes...... but seriously -- go beyond those. Let's START this week with this little exercise. Get a stop watch and set it for one minute. Now, you have one minute to name as many things as you can that you are thankful for. On your mark, get set, GO!

I did the exercise, and gave myself one minute, and as I started the stop watch, I heard the dog's paw prints running through the house. I said, "I can hear." I heard the dishwasher running. I said, "dishwashers". My eyes went to the piano that Payton plays and I said, "piano". I was seeing -- I said, "my eyes". I was sitting in a comfy chair -- "furniture". I'm cozy and warm in my daughter's "home". I saw my computer -- I wrote down "computer and internet". I glanced over at the refrigerator that holds food -- I wrote down "refrigerator and food".

In reality, literally everything from the breath we breathe to the bills we pay is a celebration of thankgiving. The bills we pay? Seriously? Oh yes, because those bills represent something to be thankful for -- a car payment (we have a car); a house payment (we have a home); an electrical bill (we have a warm home). Everywhere we look, we see things to be grateful for. And, when we live in an attitude of gratitude, rather than being bugged that the computer is too slow, we say, "I'm so thankful for my computer". Instead of complaining about our "old" car, we say, "I'm so thankful for a car." Instead of saying "I have nothing to wear, we say, "I'm so thankful for my clothes." Instead of complaining about our boss or a co-worker, we say "I'm so grateful for my job."

A grateful heart sees each day as a gift. Thankful people focus less on what they lack and more on the privileges and blessings they have.

The grateful heart is like a magnet that collects reasons for gratitude -- for the paper clip to hold those pages together; for the milk in our cereal; for the song that soothes us; for the clock we hear ticking; for the light that turns on; for the safe drive home; for the clean water from our tap, for the time we had with our loved ones. Thank you, Lord!

May we choose gratitude as a habit that we choose daily as a way of life. May we adjust our lens and see our lives and our world through the eyes of a grateful heart. May we be overwhelmed with the beauty and abundance of it all. When we live with that kind of gratitude, we will experience Thanksgiving Day.....everyday!

Always Something To Be Thankful For

Day 332 of Photo Inspirations -- Always Something To Be Thankful For
Thanksgiving Day is past, yet the turkey leftovers and a few extra pounds are still with us.  The best of what remains is still the sweet atmosphere of gratitude.  I'm so grateful for the time with my family and especially grateful to celebrate another Thanksgiving with Mom (Granny/Great Granny) -- thus my photo inspirations of this special time.  Note those two silly guys picking her up for a fun photo.  She's always been such a good sport, but precious of all -- was having family prayertime with her.  It binds us together in such sweet tenderness.  I'm so grateful for our family's heritage.  It was Dad & Mom that gave us an example to follow -- through the tough times, they stood strong -- through the joyful times, they showed us how to celebrate life.

Without a doubt, our upbringing plays a big role on the attitude we have -- where there's a spirit of grumbling and complaining, we gravitate to grumbling and complaining.  But where there's optimism and trust in God, even in tough times, we're prone to seeing life from the standpoint of gratitude.  Mom and Dad gave us the example of trusting God in the midst of trials.  But wherever we came from, and what atmosphere we were raised in, it's possible to BECOME grateful -- even if it's not our natural "bent".   But it does take discipline. It's like learning to dance or play a musical instrument or any habit that is formed -- it takes practice and doing it over and over again. The reality is that a grateful heart will make way for EVERYTHING we encounter, to find the good in it, and, best of all, it opens the door for blessings. We just have to replace complaints and fault finding, with praise and thanksgiving. Finding the good in situations, in people, in life's daily challenges.....is possible.  It's there. Here's a great example of turning the negative to positive to thankgiving.

I AM THANKFUL
...for the mess to clean after a party, because
it means I have been surrounded by friends.
...for.the taxes I pay, because it means that I'm employed.
...for the clothes that fit a little too snug,
because it means I have enough to eat.
...for my shadow who watches me work,
because it means I am out in the sunshine.
...for a lawn that needs mowing, windows that
need cleaning and gutters that need fixing,
because it means I have a home.
...for the spot I find at the far end of the parking lot,
because it means I am capable of walking.
...for my huge heating bill because it means I am warm.
...for all the complaining I hear about our government,
because it means we have freedom of speech.
...for the lady behind me in church who
sings off key, because it means that I can hear.
...for the piles of laundry and ironing,
because it means my loved ones are nearby.
...for the alarm that goes off in the early morning
hours, because it means that I'm alive.
...for weariness and aching muscles at the end of
the day, because it means I have been productive.

Yes, I am thankful.....and I purpose to live in that thankfulness.....daily.  How about you?

Gratitude Even in the Toughest Times

Day 262 of Photo Inspirations -- Gratitude Even in the Toughest Times
Last night, my Life Group's discussion was about gratitude.  I asked them to write down 10 things they are grateful for in one minute.   Some beat the minute and wrote down even more things.

I did the exercise, yesterday morning.  I gave myself one minute, also, and as I started the stop watch, I heard my dishwasher running.  I wrote down "dishwasher".  My eyes went to my piano that Papa played and now so does our grandson, Payton.  I wrote down "piano".  I was seeing -- I wrote down "my eyes", and hearing -- "my ears"; I was sitting in a comfy chair -- "my furniture"; I'm flying to Seattle today -- I wrote down "airplanes"; I saw my computer -- I wrote down "computer and internet".  I glanced over at my refrigerator -- I wrote down "refrigerator".  When we express gratitude, it's typically about the love we have for God, our family, our food, our home and car.  But, in reality, everywhere we look, we see things to be grateful for.   And, when we live in an attitude of gratitude, rather than being bugged that the computer is too slow, we say, "I'm so thankful for my computer".  Instead of complaining about our "old" car, we say, "I'm so thankful for a car."

A grateful heart sees each day as a gift. Thankful people focus less on what they lack and more on the privileges and blessings they have. I told the ladies about a FB post I saw by Greta Van Susteren yesterday.  She reported that White House aide, Jake Brewer, and the husband of Fox News frequent guest Mary Katherine Ham was killed in a bicycling accident while riding to raise funds for a charity.   They have one small child and she is pregnant with their second child. Read on to see what a heart of gratitude says during the toughest of times. Just hours after his tragic death, Mary Katherine posted this picture and note on Instagram:  

"We lost our Jake yesterday, and I lost part of my heart and the father of my sweet babies. I don't have to tell most of you how wonderful he was. It was self-evident. His life was his testimony, and it was powerful and tender and fierce, with an ever-present twinkle in the eye. I will miss him forever, even more than I can know right now. No arms can be her father's, but my daughter is surrounded by her very favorite people and all the hugs she could imagine. This will change us, but with prayer and love and the strength that is their companion, we can hope our heartache is not in vain-- that it will change us and the world in beautiful ways, just as he did. If that sounds too optimistic at this time, it's because it is. But there was no thought too optimistic for Jake, so take it and run with it. I will strive and pray not to feel I was cheated of many years with him, but cherish the gift of the years I had. In a life where nothing is guaranteed, Jake made the absolute, ever-lovin' most of his time with all of us. This is a family picture we took a couple weeks ago. It was taken because Jake, as always, was ready with a camera and his immense talent. All four members of our little, growing family are in it. I can never be without him because these babies are half him. They are made of some of the strongest, kindest stuff God had to offer this world. Please pray that he can see us and we'll all make him proud. God, I love him. Psalm 34:18 -- "The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." Philippians 1:3 "I thank my God in all my remembrance of you."

Oh, my!  This is one day after her husband's death, yet she found reasons to be grateful.  Obviously, she is a woman of gratitude. Her words,  "I will strive and pray not to feel I was cheated of many years with him, but cherish the gift of the years I had."  Instead of looking at what she didn't have, she looked at what she had. Shouldn’t we be so grateful....that at the worst, unimaginable crisis or heartbreak, we find so many reasons to be grateful?

The grateful heart is like a magnet that collects reasons for gratitude -- for the paper clip to hold those pages together; for the milk in our cereal; for the song that soothes us; for the clock we hear ticking; for the light that turns on; for the safe drive home; for the clean water from our tap, for the time we had with our loved ones.  Thank you, Lord!

May we choose gratitude as a habit that we choose daily as a way of life.  May we adjust our lens and see our lives and our world through the eyes of a grateful heart.  May we be overwhelmed with the beauty and abundance of all God has given us!
#Gratitude