"Giving thanks always for all things to God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;" Ephesians 5:20
I had someone tell me once, "If you are lucky enough to live in the Shenandoah Valley, you are lucky enough." I am grateful to live in the Shenandoah Valley ... which got me thinking about this 10 letter word ... gratitude.
- The only difference between a traffic delay and a chance to relax a bit is gratitude.
- The only difference between a thunderstorm and not needing to wash your car is gratitude.
- The only difference between an interruption and an opportunity is gratitude.
- The only difference between a joyous life and a gloomy one is gratitude.
Because at the end of the day, everyone has problems. I have problems, you have problems, we all have problems. Gratitude doesn't deny their presence; it just denies them power and precedence. I mean really, it's all about perspective. The truth is no stage of life is going to be "perfect" in the way you've envisioned it. There is always something just ahead that keeps us from appreciating what we have, if we let it. This may depress you, but it should inspire you, because it frees you up to enjoy what you have without worrying so much about making it perfect, because it ain't gonna be.
Scripture tells us "For everything there is a season." If you spend springtime wishing it would be summer and then in the summer you whine about the heat and then in the fall you mope when it rains, you'll always be unhappy. But if you enjoy the flowers in May and the sun in August and the pungent smell of wet earth in November, and if you can learn to splash in the puddles and make iced tea when the temperature is over 100, then you will enjoy every season, and you will know the secret victory of gratitude.
So whether you're in high school yearning for the big world or in college yearning to never read a book again or single and wishing you weren't or dating and annoyed he hasn't asked or married and wanting babies or a parent and dying for those babies to be grown ... just slow it down! Every step of the way, thank God. Savor it all. Drink it up.
And when life is hectic and crazy and imperfect and your finances are tight and your pants are tight and your schedule is tight ... congratulations, you are a human being. Life isn't and uninterrupted plan; life is a long series of interruptions. You either embrace them, or you don't.
So then the goal isn't to win but to see why you're already winning. It's a chessy bumper sticker, but is true ... and the happy people aren't the ones who "have the life they love but who love the life they have."
~ Pastor Todd
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