I can hardly believe how fast this year has flown by. I have already seen countless Facebook statuses starting off the month with the things people are thankful for.
As awesome as it is to see all the things people are thankful for each day, I wish we could truly be thankful for every day of our lives, no matter if it is November or not.
We so easily get caught up in all of the chaos of our lives that we tend to see the things we don't have, instead of being thankful for the things we do have. We often are thankful for the things we do have when something threatens to take the very thing we take for granted away.
I find the only way that I am able to be conscious and aware of all that God has blessed me with is if I make time to be in communication with Him. It's too hard to stay focused and content with what I do have, if I am not taking the time to really see and hear all the blessings God has given me.
So many things are fighting for my time, and I know its the same in your life as well.
What takes top priority in your life? Many people would hate to admit what really does take top priority. For me, the top priority that took the throne over my life for YEARS was success and achievement. I thrived to be successful in school, but MAINLY in gymnastics. Neither success nor achievement are bad things to strive for in your life, but the motive behind wanting to be successful and achieve much was wrong. My motives were driven by self, not driven out of my love and thankfulness to God.
I realize now what being a Christian is really all about. The Christian life is a process of better understanding what Jesus taught, learning to apply that teaching in your every day life, and then teaching others; people on the other side of the globe and people directly around us, to do the same. Satan, the world, and our sinful desires fight against our growth in the Christian life and the advance of the Gospel. When we choose to lose ourselves in this Divine romance with God, His richness overwhelms our total being. Revealed in our lifestyles and how we interact with others, God in us makes us whole and complete.
Today I am so thankful to have experienced standing in the Presence of this God of love, completely overwhelmed and satisfied with all that He has done for me. Nothing worth having comes without some kind of fight. God took away ALL that I leaned upon in my former life (gymnastics and ungodly relationships) to bring me TRUE LIFE. I went from a broken, hurting woman, through a process of healing, to finding a hope that I never knew existed, to FINALLY becoming a new woman, with a new, changed heart.
Deep within my heart, and yours is a God-shaped hole. We all have that hole. We try to fill it with buying more clothes, losing 30 pounds, having different sexual partners, the list could go on. I am thankful that God captured my heart through people pouring into me, praying for me, and eventually sending me to Nicaragua and Africa to finally have the eyes to see that I was filling the hole with all the wrong things. My new eyes have given me the chance to seize the opportunity to make a difference in many people's lives. One person I am thankful for today is my loving son, Obed. My parents were able to meet him just 2 weeks ago, when God allowed them to go to Africa to help and serve God in ways they never thought possible. I'm so thankful Obed got to meet his adopted grandparents. :)
We must remember that our identity is found in Jesus, not our job title or by the things we are good at. We are sons and daughters of God. God is pleased with me, because I am His daughter. He is pleased with you as well. You don't have to do anything to earn God's love. Nothing that you have done in your past will ever make God love you less. He loves you, regardless of any mess ups that you have had.
Today I urge you to take a look around you. Realize that you are loved, you live better than 99% of the rest of the world. The stuff you buy today, will not bring you lasting happiness through tomorrow. The only way you can truly feel at peace, satisfied, and filled with joy is through Jesus. I never knew what that really meant until a few short years ago. All of our hearts are longing for that sense of peace, yet many of us have no idea where to start. I would love to help you jump right into this love story with God.
I pray these words stir something in your heart.
I am thankful for you.
God is thankful for you, for He made you with a purpose; a beautiful purpose indeed!
