As Thanksgiving approaches, I encourage you to STOP: Count your blessings and dwell on what God has provided you with because I know that in this fast-paced world, we do not make time to give Him enough credit. These are 13 things I feel like we all take for granted much too often:
1. Waking up
Every morning, most of us turn off our alarms, throw the covers over our heads and think of how much we want to stay in our warm beds. What we neglect to think about is the fact that God gave us yet another day to use our talents for His glory through our jobs, relationships and all of our actions. We should be rejoicing every time we wake up to see another day. We should view situations as opportunities rather than chores.
2. Second chances
And third chances…and fourth chances…we have all been given grace. We have all made mistakes and been forgiven by those we love. Chances have helped salvage relationships and renew strengths. Even when people disappoint us, we have a God who never fails to forgive us; He provides us with a clean slate every time we repent and keep Him as the central priority of our lives.
3. Time
We spend so much time worrying about the future and dwelling in the past that we lose the moment in the present. This is how time is wasted and how opportunities are overlooked. We should be thankful for each moment and use each second wisely.
4. Family
For many of us, family is all we have ever known. We have not suffered very much tragic loss. We forget about all the orphans and widows who are completely alone. We have grown to accept family as an ordinary part of our lives, but family should always be recognized as nothing short of an extraordinary blessing.
5. Friends
Friends can be just as valuable as family. A true friend is a rare blessing: Someone who always listens, someone you can trust, someone who is loyal, someone who respects you and someone you can always count on for honest advice. Hold on to those friends. Be grateful for them each minute because nothing feels better than knowing you have a loyal friend who will always be there for you.
6. Education
We live in a country filled with private schools, public schools and libraries where it is made accessible for people of all kinds to learn. We take for granted that we can Google whatever we want and get information in seconds. We dread going to our 8 a.m. classes because “it’s too early.” We forget to be thankful and excited for the chances we have to learn.
7. Church
Church becomes so routine in our lives. We just expect Sunday’s to be “church day” and remember that Wednesday nights are for bible study; however, the significance gets lost. We keep ourselves so busy that we end up going through the motions. That harmful lifestyle hurts our walk with Christ and causes us to lose gratitude for our church families. We must always be thankful for the chance to worship.
8. Good health
We all take our health for granted, especially when we are not having any issues. The ability to walk, talk and speak are gifts from God that are often overlooked by our natural expectations. Be thankful for each normal check-up you have and for each breath you are given.
9. Food and shelter
We don’t think twice about going out to eat and buying groceries. We often forget that some parts of the world do not even have clean water. We should be thankful every time we sit around a dinner table in our homes and go to bed without feeling hungry under a sturdy roof that keeps us safe.
10. Clothing and transportation
Most of us have closets stuffed full of things we do not even need. We are so focused on “looking the part” each day, and we forget that some people do not even have the means to keep themselves warm. We also think nothing of having a car to drive ourselves around in. If we want to go somewhere, all we have to do is get in our cars and go. Not everyone has such an easy, accessible life. Be thankful.
11. Literature
Personally, I have four or five different Bibles. There are some parts of the world where people would do almost anything just to have one copy or even just read a chapter of it each day. In reality, most of us struggle to do our daily Bible reading. We also have a country filled with libraries that allow people check out books for free and devices like Kindles with thousands of free books to download. We take reading for granted every day.
12. Freedom
In this country, we have the freedom of speech and religion (among many other freedoms). Those are things we expect to have and feel entitled toward, but not everyone in the world has them. We constantly forget to remember how fortunate we really are.
13. Nature
The human race is too busy. I attend school on a beautiful campus, but sometimes I drive myself crazy running from point A to point B and forget to admire God’s creation. I’m a strong believer in the idea that God made this big world so that we can see as much of it as possible while we are here. We should always be eager to explore and admire the world around us; after all, it is God’s creation.
Count your blessings, name them one by one and it will surprise you what the Lord has done.
