30 Days of Thanksgiving & Gratitude: Day 29 (Thankful Thursday)

“Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough” ~ Oprah Winfrey

I AM THANKFUL FOR:

156.  Monday Night Football (especially when the Panthers win!)

157.  Goat cheese

158.  Flirting with The Man of the House

159.  Getting a flat tire fixed at no charge

160.  Open window days in late November

Ungrateful

I've got it pretty good.  We've got it pretty good.  And we don't even realize it.

This thought first started brewing as I stood in line to vote early in November.  The line was long for that last Saturday of early voting.  As I watched person after person get out of their car, check out the length of the wait, shake their head, and get back in the car.  Person after person grumble that they didn't have time to wait and get out of line to leave.

I began pondering what exactly this said about us as a nation.  There are people in the world who would give anything for the chance to vote.  People who walk miles and miles. People who stand in line for hours and hours and hours.  People who willingly risk their lives for the chance to vote.  Meanwhile, I watched literally dozens of people who couldn't be bothered to stand in line for one hour on a beautiful Saturday morning in order to exercise their right to vote.

Ungrateful.  Seeing as an inconvenience what others risk everything to grasp. 

Once the thought was there, I began to see examples of it everywhere.

My 14 years old son grumbles about having to go to school.  Meanwhile, a Pakistani girl his own age fights for her life after being shot in the head for simply wanting the same thing he complained about. 

I dread having to make a grocery list and do the shopping.  While so many in the world go hungry, wishing they were able to make a list and go to the store to purchase whatever they need or wanted to eat. 

How many other blessings do we fail to recognize?  Things we take for granted, which so many others in the world would view as a luxury.  Have we become so spoiled that we see things we should be grateful for as a bother?  

Still Grateful. What Now?

As November begins to draw to a close, I find myself in a bit of a conundrum. 

You see, I have enjoyed sharing the blessings in my daily life very much with the series "30 Days of Gratitude".  So much so, that I'm not ready to see it end. 

In the past I had the "Thankful Thursday" posts.  But somehow I'm not sure that just once a week is enough. 

Or is it? 

Should I simply consolidate all those daily blessings into one weekly post?  Or does my growing sense of thankfulness and my slowly filling gratitude journal deserve more than a little weekly blurb?

Do I start a new thankfulness series every month?

Do I just do "30 More Days of Gratitude & Thanksgiving?

Do I scrap the whole thing and just stick to my private gratitude journal? 

Or continue sharing in the hope that my experience will encourage others to explore the blessings in their own lives?

So, where do I go from here?

30 Days of Gratitude & Thanksgiving: Day 28

I AM THANKFUL FOR:

151.  Making bracelets

152.  Perfectly roasted turkey

153.  Sweet potatoes

154.  Pumpkin pie... for breakfast!

155.  Leftover turkey sandwiches

What I Deserve

Ever thought about how you really deserve something?  Maybe you've worked hard for it.  Maybe you've been having a rough time.  Maybe you've accomplished some big goal you set for yourself. 

Ever found yourself saying some form of this prayer - "God, please do this for me.  I deserve it because..."?

But do we really want God to give us what we deserve?

Oh, the nice things... sure.  But what about all the punishment for the sins against Him?  Everything that was heaped onto Jesus at the time of His crucifixion and death? That's what we really "deserve".  But instead, He took everything we deserve onto Himself so that we could receive the gifts: 

Grace, Love, Eternal life

"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." ~ Romans 5:8



His Love Endures Forever

For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations. ~ Psalm 100:5

30 Days of Gratitude & Thanksgiving: Day 27

I AM THANKFUL FOR:

146.  The man of the house coming home early

147.  Cats pretending they adore me - hoping it will earn them food

148.  Grand baby enjoying his first cookie

149. Picking out new flooring

150.  New bird feeder outside kitchen window

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30 Days of Gratitude & Thanksgiving: Day 26

I AM THANKFUL FOR:

141.  Salt water taffy

142.  Grandbaby learning to clap

143.  Being able to laugh at myself

144.  Male offspring practicing guitar

145.  Birds singing a morning song

30 Days of Gratitude & Thanksgiving: Day 25

“We would worry less if we praised more. Thanksgiving is the enemy of discontent and dissatisfaction.” ~ Harry A. Ironside

I AM THANKFUL FOR:

136.  Christmas music

137.  Breakfast buffet

138.  Sunlight reflecting through the last of red autumn leaves

139.  A safe trip home

140.  Sleeping in my own bed again

Sunday Spotlight: Upward Not Inward

Each Sunday in November I will be spotlighting guest posts written by women who have blogs which inspire and encourage me. This week's Guest Blogger is Falen from:

Confession time: I wanted a break from reality this weekend. I just wanted to run far away, a brief escape, forget about responsibilities, and rest my mind. So much to do, so much waiting, so much persevering, so much...

So, what did I do? I called in back-up and talked two girlfriends into a 7:00 a.m. Saturday morning hike! Two of us had been to this place before, and knew it would be a good ole time. We pull up, and there it is:

Do you see it? Here’s a closer pic:

First, how cool, right?! Second, it reminded me of this:

"Yes, my soul, find rest in God;

my hope comes from him.
Truly he is my rock and my salvation;

he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.

My salvation and my honor depend on God;

he is my mighty rock, my refuge."

Psalm 62:5-7

While I wanted this mental mini-vacation, there was this more than obvious reminder that God’s got this! It’s okay. This scripture is like God whispering to me:

Find rest.

Remember where your hope comes from.

You are not your own rock.

You don’t do the saving, I do.

You are protected and safe, sturdy and firm.

I’ve got this!

Whatever you are going through right now, be encouraged...

God’s got this. Keep going. Don’t give up.

One day at a time. One battle at a time. One step at a time. One prayer at a time.

One victory at a time.



30 Days of Gratitude & Thanksgiving: Day 24

I AM THANKFUL FOR:

131.  Old water mill

132.  Nativity scenes

133.  The Christmas Place

134.  Pottery

135.  Dinner Theatre



30 Days of Gratitude & Thanksgiving: Day 23

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. ~ Colossians 4:2

I AM THANKFUL FOR:

126. Titanic museum

127.  Delicious southern cooking

128.  Sight seeing in Pigeon Forge

129.  French Toast

130.  Silliness at the wax museum