Count Your Blessings

Posted on by
Reply

Nowadays, Thanksgiving dinner is cut short by a multitude of kin rushing off to pre-Black Friday sales in a subconscious attempt to fill some emotional void via a discounted shopping experience. Many Americans are shopping for a piece of peace and going deep into debt in the process. So often, a sense of entitlement (believing you deserve to have more) and/or discontentment (being dissatisfied with what you do have) are the culprits for overspending- especially during the Holiday Season. Rather than focusing on all the stuff you can buy, I’d like to encourage you to begin shifting your focus to all the blessings bestowed upon you. An attitude of gratitude is a great way to eliminate entitlement and diminish discontent.

For the next 21 days, commit to counting your non-material blessings… you know, all the stuff that money can’t buy. Use the following as a guideline. Each day, write down a few sentences about why you’re grateful for that day’s respective blessing (indicated below). After 21 days, you’ll be pleasantly surprised with the positive perspective you’ve gained from shifting your focus.

21 Days of Gratitude:

Day 1: Provision. Identify something that’s been provided for you- maybe something that you couldn’t do for yourself (ie., breath in your body, a bill paid on your behalf, etc.).

Day 2: Promise kept. Nobody likes broken promises. Think about one of God’s promises (and find the scripture to back it up), or a promise that someone made to you and fulfilled. How did it bless you and why?

Day 3: Physical ability.

Day 4: Personal touch. Babies are highly unlikely to grow into thriving, socially adept adults if they don’t experience the personal touch of a loved one. Personal touch is just that critical to human development! Who’s touch do you cherish? Whether the kiss of a spouse, the hug of a friend, the brush of your cat against your leg, or even the handshake of a trusted business partner, jot it down!

Day 5: Presence. Who’s presence brightens your day? How has this person been a blessing to your life? Take this one a step further and thank them!

Day 6: Problem solved. Consider a recent problem you faced that seemed impossible to solve. What was it, how long did it last, and how was it eventually solved? Praise the Lord for the solution!

Day 7: Prayer answered.

Day 8: Prayer “unanswered.” God answers all prayers; some just aren’t answered how we want them to be. Ever pray for something to happen or change, only to discover that you’re better off without it (or him/her)? Write it down and thank the Lord for “unanswered” prayers!

Day 9: Photo. What photo just blesses your socks off? Describe who or what is in the picture and why it’s so special to you.

Day 10: Pastor. Who is your Pastor and why are you grateful for him/her?

Day 11: Parameter. Without boundaries, we would live in a world of chaos. We need boundaries in our relationships, on our jobs, and on the highways and byways. Parameters are purposeful! What’s one parameter you are grateful for?

Day 12: Physical healing.

Day 13: Pardon received. All of us have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory (Romans 3:23) and our sins have consequences. Oh, but thanks be to God for His mercy (not giving you the penalty you deserve)! Think about a time when you were pardoned for something you were guilty of. Forgiveness is a powerful gift to give and  receive. No matter how big or small, jot it down and bless the Lord!

Day 14: Price paid. Write about a price that was paid on your behalf. This is an example of grace (receiving something you didn’t deserve/earn). Why was it such a blessing to you?

Day 15: Positive. Discuss something positive that happened to you today.

Day 16: Physical attribute. Which one of yours are you most delighted about? Don’t be shy!

Day 17: Passed test. Whether it was something school-related or a life lesson that you finally learned, consider why you’re so grateful for it. Praise the Lord you don’t have to repeat it!

Day 18: Patience. Impatience gets the best of us all from time to time. But when we’re on the receiving end of patience, it’s such a relief! Write about a time someone was patient with you. Why was it such a big deal and how did it make you feel?

Day 19: Protection. Who or what has protected you from danger and/or kept you out of harm’s way?

Day 20: Place. Can be your home, somewhere you visited, or even your place of employment. What about it makes you smile?

Day 21: Personal accomplishment. Identify it and describe it. What is it about this achievement that you are so grateful for?

We all have so much to be thankful for, yet in our humanness, we tend to take so much for granted. The more you focus on all your blessings, the less likely you’ll be to fall prey to draining discontentment, envy, jealousy, financial stress/anxiety, the evils of entitlement, or even the delusions of grandeur that blind most folks to the reality of their financial situation. You’ll smile more, complain less, begin to live within your means, and finally get out of debt (once and for all!). Invest a few minutes each day in sincere reflection of the P’s I’ve outlined above. Consider journaling and/or posting your thoughts on Facebook/Twitter, and encourage others to count their blessings with you. Gratitude is the gift that keeps on giving and peace is its by-product. Couldn’t you stand to experience a little more financial peace of mind? Count your blessings and your P’s for a great gratitude adjustment. 🙂

Have You Seen Her?

Posted on by
4

WANTED: Attractive, ambitious, stylish, generous, passionate woman filled with grace and class and confidence and humility. She’s patient and poised, witty and bewildering. Full of life, she lives in the moment and loves into eternity. Her lips are glossed with the praises of her Lord and her eyes smile with loving-kindness. She’s brilliant. Bold. Comfortably imperfect. Fabulous. She was my best friend and she’s missing. Have you seen her?

We lost touch a while ago. Seems life pulled us into opposing directions. I tried to keep up, but as life beat me down, my pace waned in defeat. Some days I see her face so clearly; most days she’s a distant memory, blurred from my consciousness. I’ve tried reaching out to her, tried catching up with her, but she’s too far gone. I’m too far gone. Lost. I fear she couldn’t take me anymore so she slipped away. She ran away. She’s so far gone. Have you seen her?

I used to see her at church. We would sing, and dance, and lift our hands in worship. It was good to me. Life and love, and God, and church… it was all so good to me. But one storm after another… one pain too plenty… one heartbreak too many… and I gave up. I shied away from church ’cause the spiritual attacks only grew worse the closer I got to God. And I got sick of hearing the preacher talk about “praising my way out” and “just believe and receive your deliverance.” Is my faith somehow defective? I have fasted, and prayed, and repented, and where is my deliverance? Am I doing something wrong? I stopped going to church ’cause the Saints made me feel crazy. Besides, I didn’t want anyone to see me like this… just a mess of the former me… the better me… the healthier me. The weight of the world was on my shoulders and I couldn’t let them see me like this. Felt like I was being punished. I miss the old me. Have you seen her?

Oh, but why bother to search? I’m sure if you cared you would have shown me. You would have called or wrote or prayed without trying to be all up in my business. You would have listened to my heart without judgement. You would have reached out to help me when you saw me slipping into the quicksand of my mental abyss, drowning in the blood of my own tears. You would have found a piece of her inside of me. You would have taken the time to show me there is hope. Wouldn’t you? You would have fought for me. Am I not worth fighting for? She would have fought for me but she’s long gone. Have you seen her?

Surely by now you would have seen me knocked down. This didn’t happen over night. It was the steady, gradual blows that did me in. I’m too tired to fight on my own. Worn out. Overwhelmed. Fatigued. My passion lies in the comfort of my bed. I’m safe here. I don’t want to get up. Don’t want to get out. It’s too cold outside. There’s no risk in laying still. I can evade disappointment. I am the soul of sorrow. I feel so worthless. Ugly even. But every now and then I think of her smile. I’d give anything to see her smile again. I wonder if she’ll ever come back to me. Have you seen her?

I can’t do this anymore. I can’t pretend that I don’t believe I’m not worthy of peace. I can’t laugh to keep from crying. Hurts too much. My face is scarred with tears and you’re own selfishness blinds your reality of me. Am I invisible to you? I wanted to talk. I wanted to open up but I lost my voice in the volume of your needs. I have given all that I have to help everyone else and it’s left me nothing but loneliness. Just can’t do this any more. I was the encourager. Who’s gonna encourage me? This pain is unbearable. You’re dismissive words are like daggers to my soul… “You’re strong. Don’t worry. You’ll be alright.” “Just pray about it.” I’m all prayed out. Can’t pray for anything other than the end of me. I’m just so empty. Disconnected. And no, I’m not strong. If being strong means I lie about my pain just to ease your mind, then I don’t ever want to be strong again. It’s not worth my sanity. I miss my saner self. WANTED: My saner self. She was beautiful. Tell me, have you seen her?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I wrote this in observance of October 10th… World Mental Health Day. Depression is not rational and it doesn’t lead to rational decisions. One in 10 adults suffers from depression. How many of them do you know? Have you overlooked their cries for help? You can’t heal them but you can help them find hope. If either you or someone you care about is suffering from depression or any other type of mental illness, there is plenty of hope to be had! Click here for tips on how to make a difference. To speak with a trained counselor, call A Place of Hope at 1-888-771-5166.