Light, Love, Hope

November brought status updates from friends stating what they were thankful for.  The idea was to begin November 1st and go through the end of November.  What the majority did, though, was go through Thanksgiving day, instead.  I chose not to do that, certainly not because I wasn’t thankful because I really and truly am!

For me, it isn’t about posting daily just for one month about how thankful you are.  It is being truly appreciative and grateful every single day for the many blessings that we have in our lives. Our thankfulness should not be contained to just one month out of the year where we announce to the public what our hearts are grateful for.  We should take time each day of the year to reflect on how blessed we are!  Further, I think that instead of announcing it on Facebook, we should share it with God in our prayers.

So many times, people only pray when they are in a crisis situation.  God seems to be the “go to” in a bad situation.  What happens when things are smooth sailing, then?  Often times, our heads are never bowed in prayer, nor are our eyes closed as we humble our hearts to hear from our Savior.

We get so busy, some times too busy, that we forget to thank God every single day for what we have and who we have in our lives.  He isn’t just there in times of trouble.  He is ever present and wants us to acknowledge him daily.

Yes, it is nice to know that when you feel alone in your troubles that you can call on the name of the Lord.  But, how about when things are calm and peaceful?  Why not thank Him for the calmness in your heart and the peace you feel in your life?

While I may not always get down on my knees beside my bed to pray, I do pray throughout the day.  Little whispers as I go about my day, thanking God for keeping my family safe, thanking Him for blessing us and giving us much more than we deserve.  Some times just silent prayers between me and my God that are not even spoken out into the universe.

You can pray any where.  Honestly.  You can pray going down the road in your car.  Often times I find myself just uttering, “Thank you, Lord” as I’m driving.  Other times I’m on the back of my horse soaking in all of God’s beauty around me.  I take time right there to whisper prayers to Him or I silently pray to God as my horse and I go along.  I thank Him for these beautiful, magnificent creatures that allow us to love on them and provide hours of enjoyment in the wilderness.  You truly feel like you’re in His presence when you’re out in nature.  In the middle of the woods, riding near the water’s edge, I like to take a deep breath in and exhale all of the stresses of the world out.  I clear my thoughts and my mind, and my heart is focused on God.

We have so much to be thankful for.

My daughter was involved in a car accident at the beginning of November.  A guy ran the red light and plowed right into her driver’s door, caving it in.  She received some bumps and bruises in the accident, but God protected her so that it was not any worse.  I thank God for this!  She’s here.  She’s walking, talking, smiling again, and enjoying life.  My heart is forever grateful that God sheltered her in this accident.

My parents are both still here and are healthy for the most part.  Sure, they feel like they have a busy schedule with all the doctor appointments they have to go to, but they are still doing good, all things considered.  They came over to share the Thanksgiving feast with us, and I’m thankful that we got to hear their laughter and take silly pictures with them.

We’re blessed in that we have jobs that allow us the freedom to be with our families without feeling pressured or guilty when we do.  Our employers realize that family comes first, and that is the way it should be!  Too many times, employers feel like their employees should not have a life outside of the work place.  They rarely give time off to their staff and drive them like slaves when they are working.  We’ve also encountered the employer that insisted that my husband have his work phone on at all times, even when we were on vacation.  Thankfully, my husband and I now work for companies that allow us to make our families a priority instead!

God has blessed us financially, not to where we have all the riches in the world, but to where we are comfortably able to supply the necessities for our family of four.  We are able to send our children to a private Christian school where they are allowed to pray and share their faith openly.  While no school is perfect, we do feel that this school is the best in our area and allows my children to be sheltered from harsh bullying and drug use that goes on at the public schools in town.

We have had the privilege and honor to watch my oldest daughter walk across the stage to receive her high school diploma.  While she did not wish to go right into college after graduation, she took a few months to get a taste of what the “real world” was like.  She took a job at a local credit union as a teller, and as glamorous as that might sound, she soon learned that adults can be bullies, too.  She encountered several adult bullies in the work force, with two being her supervisors.  More times than she can remember, she dealt with individuals that were rude, condescending, and down right mean.  But it helped her grow as a person and realize that she did NOT want to do this the rest of her life.  She stood up for herself and refused to take any more of their abuse, and now that she quit her job, she is looking forward to furthering her education beginning in January!  Yes, I will have a college student beginning January 11, 2016!  God has blessed us to where we can afford to send her to college for a degree that will help her go far in life.

We truly do have so much to be thankful for, and we are!  Each and every day!