These are some of the questions that I deal with sometimes: Do I have everything that I want? Is everything perfect in my life? Is my home exactly how I want it to look? Do I struggle with things outside of my control? Am I thankful for the things that I DO have and not what I want to have? The answers for me are no, no, no and yes, yes. Perhaps these are some of the things that you ask yourself as well.
So, this is what I do instead….
I remind myself that I’m so thankful that we have a God who really sees us when the rest of the world may just shrug us off. God knows us and He knows what’s in our hearts and our minds before we can even voice those thoughts, worries, or pain and before we even cry out to Him. All that He asks is that we trust Him to get us through when we struggle with those very questions above.
When we are thankful, we can see things that others skip over or choose to ignore. When we give thanks, we are acknowledging that we need God in every part of our lives. When we ask God for help, we are trusting the process to Him especially if we don’t understand it and are powerless to change it on our own. Being thankful means giving God the reins and trusting Him to get us to where He needs us to be.
Is this process easy? No. It’s very, very hard to let go of those things that we don’t understand like needless pain inflicted on others, on killings, on wars, and other cruelties that we may witness personally or through the media. I know in my heart that we can only try to make differences in those that are around us and demonstrate how thankful that we are when we know that God helps us to do what we can. We can’t take on the world…. I’ll just leave that to God. I’ll do what I can because He’s been giving us plenty of warning about what will happen if we don’t change. I’m just thankful that I can help Him in some small ways even when I’m frustrated when it doesn’t work. (Related posts: Okay God……We need to talk; Beware! There is DANGER, ahead!!; and The lessons that I’ve learned during a global pandemic.)
What did I learn from this? I can try my best to help others, but I can’t control what other people choose to do. What I can do is pray for them that they see what they need to change before it’s too late. I try to say “thank you!” all the time to God- when I wake up, throughout the day and especially at night. When I go about my day being thankful for what I have versus what I want and…. surprise, surprise…. I have become more in tune with what I have already been given.
So, what can you gain from this? Try saying thanks a little more, too. Even if it’s just one time a day, then start paying attention about how it makes everything seem a little bit lighter for your heart and your mind and your soul. It’s just a small thing than can have huge benefits in the long run. In the end, it’s up to you.
A Joyful Mission 