I want to write this post mainly because of Thanksgiving coming soon. I give thanks on a daily basis, sometimes on an hourly basis but it seems that many people are struggling to feel thankful at a time when so much uncertainty is present in our world. Maybe, I look at everything in a positive way, I can find so much to be thankful for and I am not speaking monetarily.
Put politics aside and think about trusting in Our Higher Power to calm the storms and bring peace on earth. Can we be thankful we have a God who loves us and has given us so many things to be thankful. Each breath, each step, each smile, each laugh, and even each tear means we are alive. For all of us who read God’s word, only Heaven is spoken of as Paradise. Even though we have numerous places of beauty to be thankful for on earth, we look forward to seeing and living in the wonderment of eternal beauty and peace.
Let’s look at some of life’s gifts for consideration of being thankful:
- A quiet place to read, meditate, pray, or rest
- A stream to sit and listen to the water soothingly making a bubbling sound.
- A bed, whether it is small or large, soft or hard, to lay our head to sleep.
- A roof over our head to keep us dry as rain or snow falls, and to keep us cool when it is hot and warm when it is cold.
- A bathroom, or more than one, to allow us to have privacy when we need to release bodily waste.
- A job, whether it is a medial or executive position where we can apply our intelligence, skills, and talents to pay our bills.
- A community to be a part or the country or wilderness to choose whether we prefer to mingle or be alone.
- A church to go to of our choice of faith to display our love of God and to ask for forgiveness when we seek the cleanliness of our redeemed souls.
I purposely left out the usual gifts we give thanks for and sometimes take for granted. Relationship with the person we love; family; friends; and our day to day associates are meant to give thanks and show respect. Do we give thanks for adversity, changes, disappointments, and wait for it…..failures?
Personally, in my life, the adversity, the changes, disappointments, and even failures have strengthened my inner strength, heightened my awareness that I am a WIP and am learning from each experience. Let me give thanks!
Do we give thanks for losses? I am sure you are shaking your head at this one. However, when we lose, we revisit our performance and seek ways we could have been better, right? This self evaluation can enhance future performances which can bring us closer to success. Let me give thanks!
Do we appreciate challenges or do we find ourselves wanting a coasting life? From my observation and research on many happy couples and successful business people, and even writers as myself, we welcome challenges and thrive on overcoming challenges. Let me give thanks!
As you can see from this post, we should give thanks for the “good, bad, and ugly” as God has designed life as a challenge, full of disappointments, and failures for us to become strong and attentive to the possibilities when we overcome those very things. God allows us to slip while keeping His Hand near to assist us but His Hands are not there to do all of the work. It is not that He can’t but how do we learn to be the best we can be.
If a parent never releases a child’s hand, they hold on and it takes longer for them to pull away. Yes, a child may fall while trying to walk, but when they see they can do it, the biggest smiles and the widest eyes appear as they see opportunity ahead. Let us give thanks for letting go!
(C) Copyright 2012-2020 Arline Miller of Sipping Cups of Inspiration with all rights and privileges reserved. Third party material, if source is known, is credited to original location including photos.
