THE POWER OF THANKSGIVING: FAITH OF A CHILD

“In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”

~ 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (The Bible)

With Thanksgiving only a week (or less 😊) away, the LORD has really been reminding me of the power of a grateful heart. It is so easy to look around at the world and give into despair or our own frustrations and pains while conveniently ignoring the many commands in Scripture to “give thanks in all things”. When we don’t feel like it or things around us are genuinely bad, the idea of “giving thanks” can seem ludicrous or downright wrong. Yet, that phrase “all things” is pretty decisive and, as my Pastor loves to ask, “What does the word ‘all’ in Scripture mean?”

“ALL.”

Thanksgiving is not an emotion. It is a choice. And it is a choice that has tremendous power to set us free from all kinds of problems: fear, depression, anxiety, anger, self-pity (trust me: I learned this one the hard way!). So, with that in mind, I wanted to share with you a list I recently re-discovered. It was written sometime eons ago (at least 1998 😉) when my young heart realized I needed to focus on what God had given me instead of what I thought I needed but didn’t have. Though incredibly basic (just pencil scratches on school rule paper) and incredibly random (items definitely not listed in order of importance 😊), I hope its childish transparency and simple faith inspire you to sit down and make out your own list, perhaps even share it with your friends and family as you gather to celebrate this year…

“THINGS TO BE THANKFUL FOR:

I live in America.

I can read.

I can write.

I have a family that loves me.

I have an imagination.

I’m pretty.

I have a wonderful dog that loves me.

I have a dream.

I’m important.

The devil is afraid of me.

Jesus loves me!

I have a great house.

I have quality clothes.

I have Felicity [My “American Girl” doll].

All my stuffed animals.

I have been able to be with horses a lot.

Joel [my Brother] and I are best buddies.

For Mommy and Daddy… [and a whole list of friends and family 😊]

I have a toilet.

I have toilet paper [can I get an “AMEN!” from my fellow 2020 Survivors?! 😉].

I have a bathtub.

I have good, clean water.

For all the Christian music artists.

For my own room.

I have my own cd player and cd’s [Yes, children: before digital copies, there were these things called “cd’s”, to say nothing of “mini-discs”, “cassette tapes”, “8-tracks”…😊].

For my future husband.

For JESUS!

For everything that’s my own.

For a wonderful neighborhood and neighbors.

For my future horse.

For Marguerite Henry and Wesley Dennis [my very favorite horse author and my favorite illustrator].

For Wild Horse Annie [the lady who helped rescue wild mustangs from slaughter in the mid-1900’s].

For Frank Peretti [my very favorite author! You get the feeling I liked to read as a kid? 😉].

For my Littlest Pet Shop toys.

For Arabian horses [you also get the feeling I liked horses?…And still do! 😊].

For George Washington, and Ronald Reagan, etc., etc., etc.

The List goes on and on…” 😊

And, you know, looking at that list, I’m still thankful for each and every one of those things (especially toilet paper, though, once again, not in order of importance…😉).

Truly, we all have so much to be thankful for in our lives: big things, small things, and even the hard things (Romans 8:28).

Let’s make sure Jesus knows how grateful we are this week!

CHOOSE HEROIC,

CHRISTIS JOY