We should be thankful for our blessings
“Fear God, revere and worship Him knowing that He is … for this is the whole of man (the full original purpose of His creation … the foundation of all happiness …)
— Ecclesiastes 12:13 (AMP)
A few months ago, after an eye exam, I started wearing glasses. It’s been quite an adjustment for me, since I’m not use to having something on my face all day. It’s also somewhat troublesome because I’m experiencing some peripheral distortion. Everyone I tell says I’ll adjust, and I’m fortunate to go this long without having to wear glasses.
One morning, as I put on my glasses, I wondered if I had ever really thanked God for my vision. I realized it’s one of those things we tend to take for granted.
In our hurried lives, how often do we stop and thank God for the things we take for granted?
Researchers say, through life’s difficulties, we need to search for something that we can be grateful for. Doing so, they say, improves our health and happiness.
I like to take the holiday season and focus on the principle of thanksgiving. I believe it’s a principle our country was founded on, and it’s a focal point that Jesus mentioned when he prayed.
This year it would be nice to focus on the common things we don’t often think about being grateful for, such as our senses to see, hear, taste and touch. We might take these for granted, but do without one and see the big difference it makes.
My friend had a problem with her taste buds due to a medication she was taking. She said that while eating, nothing had any flavor, and afterward left a funny taste in her mouth.
We can also be thankful for the gift of hot water and its soothing effects on our aching muscles.
I’ve read stories of people making gratitude lists and being healed of their discouragement, helping them to move forward.
Showing gratitude opens up our spirits so we can connect with God and he can reveal to us what we possess that brings pure happiness.
It’s like that old hymn instructs us: we’re to count our blessings, name them one-by-one, and we’ll see what God has done.
• Annettee Budzban is a Christian author, speaker, life coach and nurse. She can be contacted at annetteebudzban@aol.com or (847) 543-8413.