3 minute read
Count Your Blessings
Summer holidays have ended. School is back in session for another year. The fall season is upon us. Many of us have been canning and freezing putting away food for the winter. The other day when I was out hiking in the mountains, I noticed the little pikas gathering grass to store away in their dens for winter. It is indeed that time of the year.
As we gather in the fall harvest, we’re reminded how truly good God is to us. Let us be sure to thank God for the many blessings He showers on us. No less than twelve times in Psalm 36 we’re urged to give God thanks. The psalmist declares, “Give thanks to the God of heaven. His faithful love endures forever.” Psalm 136:26
When I’m feeling down, I turn my thinker into a thanker, and soon I’m feeling very blessed. Try it. See what happens when you count your many blessings.
Several years ago, the residents of a nursing home were gathering around the table for their Thanksgiving meal. Before they ate, the director asked each in turn to express one thing for which they were thankful.
Thanks were expressed for a warm home in which to stay, their families, friends, etc… When it was her turn to speak, one elderly woman said this “I thank the Lord for two perfectly good teeth, one in my upper jaw and one in my lower jaw that match so I can chew my food.”
I love this story! Many of us would complain that we had lost almost all our teeth. But this dear woman chose to give thanks for her two remaining teeth that they matched each other, and that she could still chew her food!
In life, many of us see the cup as half empty rather than half full. But even in difficult circumstances, we can still give God thanks. We read in 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “Be thankful in all
circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” No matter what our circumstances may be, it is always God’s will that we be thankful for the blessings we do have.
In Ephesians 5:20, the Apostle Paul challenges us, “And give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Have you ever made a list of “everything” for which you’re thankful? I encourage you to do it. Get out a pen and paper. Write down all your blessings. Make a list of ALL the things for which you’re thankful to God. The old song says, “Count your blessings! Name them one by one. Count many your blessings, see what God has done.”
This is so simple! But it is highly effective! It is one of the best ways I know to cheer myself up. When I’m feeling down, I turn my thinker into a thanker, and soon I’m feeling very blessed. Try it. See what happens when you count your many blessings. How long will your list be? See if you can come up with a list of at least 100 blessings!
