Saturday, November 19, 2011

Thanksgiving

Living with so much abundance, I take for granted a million blessings each day. Instead of living with gratitude, I focus on my worries and concerns, my mind ruled by my to-do list.  When does gratitude come naturally to me?  When someone bails me out of a tough situation, I am grateful. When someone forgives me for messing up, I am grateful.  When anyone gives me positive reinforcement, I am grateful.  When I pray, I am grateful, because my mind focuses on He who sustains me and gives me everything!  Since living gratefully escapes my natural tendencies, I have to work at it.  I try to write down five things for which I am grateful each day. I plug prayer into my daily schedule.  I want to talk about the "highlights" of my day more over dinner, because focusing on the positive in our lives deeply enriches every moment!   Sharing our positive thoughts with others, giving positive reinforcement, deepens the quality of our lives in immeasurable and profound ways, bonding us to others and fueling the goodness in our hearts and theirs.  Thanksgiving -- truly being thankful for all the good in our lives and the good in those around us-- is absolutely magical!  I pray your celebration of gratitude will be filled with the warm feelings of well-being that comes from truly counting our blessings and giving thanks to Him who provides it all!  Thank you so much for reading this! -  JB

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

God's Timing

I was feeling out of sorts, but couldn't really identify anything specific...just a little grumpy, forgetful, that not-quite-right feeling.  As I went for a morning walk in the sunshine, I realized the source: the coming and going of precious family members triggered my loss of Melissa in an incredibly subtle way.  I didn't consciously feel sad, but somewhere deep down my soul was saying, "Where's Melissa?"   Slight symptoms of grief were plaguing me, without me even knowing it.  I love the way identifying a problem half fixes it!!  Once I realized why I was feeling a little blue, I could accept it and feel better!!  I grabbed my cell phone to call the friend who had the insight to share with me this common experience of grieving parents: feeling sad when other family members come in and out of your home.  I was surprised to hear her voice, since I assumed I would just get her voice mail.  And guess what she was feeling at the time?  Right!  Her son was  home for the weekend, and she was wondering why she was not feeling more happy and energetic!  I reminded her of her own insight that she had shared with me a few years earlier.  "So, do you think you were meant to make this phone call?"  she asked, teasingly.  We had both seen the fingerprints of our Lord all over that timing.  Then I confessed to her, "And God had to tell me twice to phone you!!"   It was true.  The thought had occurred to me to call her at the beginning of my walk, but I dismissed it.  I finally called the second time the thought came to mind.  If I had listened to the Holy Spirit the first time, I could have felt better sooner!   We never know how or when God will speak to us, but we do know He is always there, always ready to hold us, always our loving and faithful Creator who longs to bless us!  Hope you hear the sweet whisper of God today! - And follow His leading! - Blessings JBM