Thankfulness

Rejoice always,

pray without ceasing,

give thanks in all circumstances;

for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Thess. 5:16-18 ESV

 It's not always the easiest thing to do. Grumbling for some reason is much easier than gratitude. "Counting your curses instead of your blessings" is what we call it around here, or rather, when in the middle of Attitude Adjustment, it's in the form of an admonition to count your blessings, instead of your curses.

I've been pretty grumbly at times today. We need a new roof, and there's water damage in the living room that may or may not come from the old roof. We're hoping that it won't be serious in the end, but we won't know until they tear off the old roof and see what's there to see. I could go on and on, but I won't.

You see, we are so blessed, so very blessed, that we don't even know how blessed we are. How many people are out there with no roof, or dirt floors, or a whole family crammed into a room or two, or not enough to eat? And here we are, grumbling about our not-perfect house, or an annoying sister, or plans that aren't shaping up exactly the way we want them to. Not to mention our own shortcomings, the things that didn't get done today because of our (poor) choices.

No. Not going there. I'm going to concentrate on blessings right now. I can hear the Giant Schnoz enthusiastically gulping her dog food after ignoring it all day. (A little kombucha was all she wanted. Guess she was feeling grumbly, too.) Dinner will be quick and easy tonight -- crepes. Just whip them up in the blender and start frying, one by one, and top with powdered sugar and lemon juice and roll them up. Church meeting tonight to talk about the possibility of a new pastor, after our church has been in limbo for many months.

(Still counting blessings... the interim pastor has been a gift of God, a shepherd who loves the sheep he's been given to guide through a difficult time, who has brought healing with his wise and understanding heart.)

Anyhow, am going to keep on counting those blessings and more, even after I finish up here and post this.

How many blessings can you name today?