“Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise;
give thanks to Him and praise His name.
For the Lord is good and His love endures forever;
His faithfulness continues through all generations.”
Psalms 100:4-5
Thanksgiving. A day celebrating the blessings of the past year. A season to focus on gratefulness. We hear often, and studies prove, the importance of giving thanks. Taking time to survey each day to pinpoint reasons to be thankful. I’m all-in on the concept of “thanksliving”, being mindful of our blessings amidst the stress and disappointments of daily life. A thankful heart brings perspective and splashes of peace and joy.
“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.
It turns what we have into enough, and more.” – Melody Beattie
However, if you’re in the middle of a hard, blessings become blurred and fade, overshadowed by problems and heartaches. Heartache is where our family travels this year as we mourn and adjust to an empty place in our holidays. A beloved brother lost his battle with cancer this past summer. He rallied the troops for a family game, or three, and brought layers of laughter to our gatherings with his quick wit and passion for fun. My husband’s soul will forever walk with a bit of a limp, missing his brother and their shared bonds from loving all things loud and rumbling to the pleasure of building and creating.
It’s important in these days of hard to continue to give thanks. Not ignoring the hurt, but acknowledging that even in trouble, God is good and the floodgates of His mercies and blessings flow open and free. Though some days require digging a little deeper, gratefulness becomes treasure that casts golden rays of light on the shadows that threaten to creep into territory where they don’t belong.
“Give thanks in all circumstances,
for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
I Thessalonians 5:18
A level of hard exists beyond what we are experiencing, where thankfulness can feel impossible and almost inappropriate. Perhaps today you are there and you’re grasping the last threads of your rope; the final shreds of your hope. Hang on. Hope abounds in Jesus. Always. Hope.
No matter what darkness swirls around us, despite the depth of loss or fear, the love of God and His endless mercies remain solid and firm beneath us. That is where we stand in our hardest of hard. That is why He is called our Rock. (Psalm 18:2) Pleasures and happiness come and go. Good health and financial stability disappear like the sand sucked from under our feet as the tide withdraws from the shore. Relationships are broken, destroyed, or stolen from us.
One true hope stirs a pure whirlpool of joy in the murkiest waters: God has promised us eternal life in His presence. Where there will be no more pain. No more suffering. No more heartache. No more meanness. No more shaming. No more anger. No more fear. No more disease. No more death. In the meantime, He is present here with us. Being our safe place. Our solid rock on which to stand. Jesus. Hope.
“He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
He set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand.” Psalm 40:3
Hang in there, my dear sister. If you are in a place you cannot dredge up a single thankful thought, I am praying for you today in your hard. I am grateful for you and the purpose God has for your life. If you are a Christ follower, I pray His presence will be manifest in great measure to you today. If you are not yet sure about Jesus, I pray you will call out to Him. He’s waiting for you. He’s longing for you to turn to Him. He yearns to shower you with His love and healing; to restore hope into your heart and life.
Jesus says, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33) And for that, I am most thankful.
Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash
