Photo from canvasreplicas.com
As today is officially Thanksgiving Day, I wanted to take this time to write about how truly thankful I am for so many things. I have been sharing with people that there is a strong connection between a person’s level of gratitude and their lives being filled with faith and trust. It is difficult to exhibit faith and trust in God when we have a complaining or whining spirit. Usually a complaining spirit puts the attention on the self, which makes it very hard to focus on the greatness and the goodness of God. It always causes us to focus on what we don’t have rather than the things that we do have.
But when a person has this “attitude of gratitude,” they are able to see the blessings in everything – the cup is always half-full instead of being half-empty. This gives them faith. It also enables them to trust in a God who is trustworthy.
I am praying that I continue to grow in this area of thankfulness and gratitude.
Therefore, today, as I reflect on all the ways God has blessed me throughout this year, I am thankful for:
2) God’s Gifts. As I am seeing my kids grow up right before my eyes, I realize that they are truly God’s gift to me and Christina. We are just stewards and we need to hold them loosely. Also, I cannot believe Christina has loved me faithfully and fervently for all these years. Oh, how my life would be so different if God did not give me these gifts.
3) God’s Generosity. It is amazing how God met all of my needs for this year. I understand in greater depth about how God lavishes His love upon His children. God is never a cheapskate (Ro 8:32). He continues to shock me with His generosity towards me. In fact, it is so humbling that it makes me want to love Him more.
4) God’s Guidance. It is always a good thing when the Person you are following already knows the way. This year has truly been a year of learning to fully trust and follow God as He led the way, day by day. There have been times when things did not make complete sense, but somehow at the end, everything turned out for His glory and for my good. There is definitely no other way, than to trust and obey.