Thankful in 2007

Apparently I need to update this…..Lindsey, Liza threw you under the bus.

I guess I don’t really have too much to say….In the spirit of Thanksgiving I guess I’ll go with the “Be thankful” thing. Original, I know.

Psalm 106:1, and many other Psalms say “Give thanks to the Lord. For He is good; His mercy endures forever.

This is another “original” thought but what are you thankful for these days.

Start a list. I dare you. You’ll come up with more things than you realize once you get started.

We had Thanksgiving day with Eliza’s family this year. Grandma asked me to say a little something before dinner, and one of the things I came up with was a list emailed to me a few years ago.

It’s a list of “The Best Things in Life” by Deacon Terry Downey.

Here’s the list. See if you agree.

* Falling in Love
* Laughing so hard your face hurts
* A hot shower
* A special glance
* Getting mail
* Hearing your favorite song on the radio
* Lying in bed listening to the rain outside
* Hot towels out of the dryer
* Finding the sweater you want is on sale for half price
* Chocolate milkshakes
* A long distance phone call
* A bubble bath
* Giggling
* a good conversation
* The beach
* Laughing at yourself
* Midnight phone calls that last for hours
* Running through sprinklers
* Laughing for absolutely no reason at all
* Having someone tell you that you're beautiful
* Laughing at an inside joke
* Friends
* Waking up and realizing you still have a few hours left to sleep
* Making new friends or spending time with old ones
* Having someone play with your hair
* Sweet dreams
* Hot Chocolate
* Swinging on swings
* Watching a good movie cuddled up on a couch with someone you love
* song lyrics printed inside your new CD so you can sing along with out feeling stupid
* Getting butterflies in your stomach every time you see that one person
* Making eye contact with a cute stranger
* Seeing smiles and hearing laughter from your friends
* Holding hands with someone you care about
* running into an old friend and realizing that some things (good or Bad) never change
* Discovering that love is unconditional and stronger than time
* Hugging the person you love
* Watching the expression on someone's face as they open a much desired present from you
* Watching the sunrise
* Getting out of bed every morning and thanking God for another beautiful day.

It’s a tough world right now.

What if you have a job these days? Be thankful, even if you hate it. Unemployment in Michigan is pushing 9-10%. We’re blessed to have jobs right now.

See that job, as much as we may hate it, allows us to pay the bills. It allows us to put food on the table. It allows us to put gas in the car. It allows us to go Christmas shopping.

The 9-5, or 8-5, or 7-4 or shoot, even the 12 hour day jobs are the things God gives us to sustain our life. In 2 Thessalonians 3:10, the Bible says “If a man doesn’t work, neither should he eat.”

This doesn’t mean if you get laid off, you shouldn’t eat. But it’s saying if you’re lazy…

We are blessed to have jobs these days. I work with and know plenty of people that don’t really like their jobs. But most of the people who feel that way, have never had to go paycheck to paycheck. They’ve never had to worry about getting a paycheck.

For those fortunate to have a steady job, they worry about getting raises or bonuses. They worry if the raise will be 2% instead of the 10-20% raise they feel they deserve.

I’m guilty of it. It’s easy to get caught up in the wanting more, and forgetting what we have.

I’m blessed enough to have some money left after paying the bills. Some of it is because of good decisions and not overextending, but most of it is because God blessed me with a good job.

Even when our little one is born, we’ll have some leeway. Not nearly as much, but we shouldn’t have to worry too much. If we ever get a house….tighter still, but should be okay.

And that’s based on what we have right now. Who’s to say that in the next 6 months, God doesn’t bless us? I could get a raise. We might find a good deal on a house. We might sell the condo for what we want to get for it.

I’m reminded of the song lyrics, “His eye is on the sparrow and I know he watches me.”

If God is taking care of the sparrows, and he loves us more, don’t you think he’ll take care of us?

Be thankful for what we have. Be diligent with what we have.

Start your “Thankful” list. Watch how quickly it grows.