Thankful.

      Dark clouds hover, thick; ominous. Rain pounds the saturated ground, creating puddles around the stiff cornstalks dying in the hibernating garden. Days come and they go, still the clouds bubble overhead sending rain down on our wet farm. Today breaks, clouds hurry out of the way as burning sun streams through. Golden light saturates our field. Illuminating every drop of rainwater. A million prisms are created in millions of rain drops. They capture gold sun, reflecting it in bright contrast to the heavy grey clouds that loiter around the horizon. Sun comes into our house, filling our windows with white light.

      Thankfulness streams into the dark of hearts, bringing warmth and light. On the eve of Thanksgiving, I am reminded that thankfulness is not something we exercise once a year. It’s a choice we make every day, every moment, every second.

     

      I think of Ann Voskamp’s  book, One Thousand Gifts. God used this little book to open the dark unthankful of my heart, exposing it to the light. If you haven’t read this book yet, you should. {Go here to order the book and read her inspired blog: http://onethousandgifts.com/ }

      The choice of thankfulness is not easy. It’s not what I  instinctively choose. It goes against the grain of our sinful nature. I say, “why, God?” not “Thank you, God.”

      The choice of thankfulness is a glorious one. When we open our hands to praise God, to receive everything from Him as a gift. Thanking Him for the good, the bad, the beautiful; the ugly. To stop saying why long enough to give thanks, opens the dark to let in the light. In His light is joy and peace.

Psalm 28: 7
The LORD is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to Him.

      Thankful, starts in the small, the everyday. We train our eyes to see God’s hand at work in the tiny things, so that we can trust Him for the vast unknown.

My thankful starts in the everyday common.

 

Thank you for butter.
For rolling pins.
For sticky, flour-covered counters.
For baking pie crust, flakey and golden.
For soap bubbles.
For rain pouring.
For cold wind blowing.
For singing hymns with the family.
Thank you for my dear family who loves me when I’m the hardest to love.
Thank you Jesus Christ, my Savior, for your blood to wash me.
Thank you Jesus for your love to a wretched sinner like me.

Psalm 107: 8-9
Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of men! For He satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things.

Choose to live in the thankful.