An Attitude of Gratitude
Wow! Time goes fast whether you are having fun or not! I had committed to blogging twice a week and I see it's been nearly two weeks again. Life must slow down!!!
But that isn't going to happen for at least two weeks yet. This week we are busy getting ready to head to Deadwood for the CFDA National Championship. That entails getting the camper cleaned, stocked and ready to travel. It means I need to brush up on the scoring program and have all the necessary supplies packed and ready to go. It means I need to plan meals since we are going to cook most of our meals on the grill. And it always seems to mean that we have to make the necessary repairs to the camper. And then there are the clothes and the costumes--which I finished this past weekend! Whew, not quite last minute but close enough to make me stress.
But that's not really what I wanted to chat about today, I have something with more meat than my crazy schedule.
My ongoing health issues plus a recent flare up of old problems has turned me into a complainer. I truly dislike hearing everyone's boo-hoo story after the first 30 minutes (or less), but I fear I have way over complained recently...or maybe I am just tired of hearing myself think about poor me. Either way, it's not a good idea to spend too much time dwelling on the negatives in life, which quite honestly make up a very small percentage of our lives.
The cure is to take yourself in hand and concentrate on being thankful for all the many things in life that are good and right. The Bible even has a verse for this: Philippians 4:8, "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things."
So what can we think on when we are tempted to whine and cry and complain and mope? Well I have a pretty general list that should get everyone started:
1. We live in a county that, despite it's faults, has made a pretty nice lifestyle for us. What is considered poverty in the United States is affluence in some third-world countries. We have freedom of speech and, although it might get you in hot water with your friends, is a protected right for all of us, although it would probably serve us better if we kept our mouths shut a bit more, speaking for myself, that is! We have the freedom to worship without fear of persecution. We have the freedom to come and go as we please. The list could go on and on, and most of us probably don't realize what a blessing some of our rights are since we don't understand the persecution and lack of rights in other countries.
2. Family is one of the greatest blessings I have. I was reading a book about ways to survive autoimmune diseases, and one chapter dealt with establishing a support group. I was able to completely skip that chapter because I have a healthy support group in the form of my mother, my husband, my kids, and even the grandkids help grandma get up off the couch! Mike is my advocate, my encourager, my moral support, my should to cry on, and the guy who is always willing to run stuff up and down the basement steps. He accompanies me to doctor's appointments, he cooks what he knows I need to eat to get healthier, and he also gives me "the look" when I am not being a good girl. I am confident that my mother seldom misses a day praying for all of her kids, and probably her grandkids too. I am so very blessed in this area, and if I had no other blessings to count, this one would be enough!
3. I have no idea why God chose to plunk me down in the middle of nowhere, but I am so thankful that he did. I like our little town, and by almost any standard it is a little town, population 250 on a good day! Crime is almost non-existent unless you count the occasional speeder, and once in a while something bigger, but not all that big by national standards. In Springview, no one suffers alone. When misfortune or sorrow comes to visit, so do the neighbors, bearing cakes and casseroles and, most importantly, words of encouragement and a shoulder to cry on. And, when lady luck has frowned upon me and my car breaks down, I can walk almost anywhere I want to go.
4. I have a "dream job". No, it's not perfect but it comes with a steady paycheck, some pretty nice benefits, it's right across the street from my house, and it's a job with the kind of of work I enjoy doing. There aren't a lot of great paying jobs around here, and many people have to drive out of town to their jobs, adding an hour or two to their day, so working right in my own hometown is definitely a blessing.
5. I know that my health issues are the main reason reason I complain, but I am still warm and above ground, I am still able to do most everything I want to do, nothing hurts when I don't move, and none of my ailments are fatal. When we were at the Mayo Clinic in March, I was astounded by the condition of some of the patients, and yet they were still smiling and making an effort to improve their condition. I'd say they had more to complain about than to be thankful for, but they still smiled through it all.
6. This might seem kind of material, but I am thankful for my home. It's not a mansion or the nicest home in town, but I love the homeyness of my home. Most of the time it needs more attention than it gets in the form of dusting and vacuuming and tidying up, but it keeps the rain and snow off our heads, it breaks the wind, and keeps a fairly even temperature for us to be comfortable. It is a sanctuary from the world and a place where we live our private lives. This house, which we have made into our home, is now over 100 years old and has been occupied by at least four other families that I know of, and has hopefully been a sanctuary for all of them.
So these six categories should get anyone in the mood to be thankful. And we haven't even talked about a safe and steady food supply, the clothes on our backs and the clothes crammed into our closets, decent medical care, the cars we drive, the money we have to spend on non-necessities, and the list goes on and on.
I have one last thing I want to express gratitude for, a God that never leaves us or forsakes us, who is the Provider of all that we require in life and then some. We allowed God to enter our lives 38 years ago, and in that time He has provided more than we could ask or imagine. Even if the first 6 items didn't exist or we couldn't consider them blessings, God would still be the greatest blessing!
But that isn't going to happen for at least two weeks yet. This week we are busy getting ready to head to Deadwood for the CFDA National Championship. That entails getting the camper cleaned, stocked and ready to travel. It means I need to brush up on the scoring program and have all the necessary supplies packed and ready to go. It means I need to plan meals since we are going to cook most of our meals on the grill. And it always seems to mean that we have to make the necessary repairs to the camper. And then there are the clothes and the costumes--which I finished this past weekend! Whew, not quite last minute but close enough to make me stress.
But that's not really what I wanted to chat about today, I have something with more meat than my crazy schedule.
My ongoing health issues plus a recent flare up of old problems has turned me into a complainer. I truly dislike hearing everyone's boo-hoo story after the first 30 minutes (or less), but I fear I have way over complained recently...or maybe I am just tired of hearing myself think about poor me. Either way, it's not a good idea to spend too much time dwelling on the negatives in life, which quite honestly make up a very small percentage of our lives.
The cure is to take yourself in hand and concentrate on being thankful for all the many things in life that are good and right. The Bible even has a verse for this: Philippians 4:8, "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things."
So what can we think on when we are tempted to whine and cry and complain and mope? Well I have a pretty general list that should get everyone started:
1. We live in a county that, despite it's faults, has made a pretty nice lifestyle for us. What is considered poverty in the United States is affluence in some third-world countries. We have freedom of speech and, although it might get you in hot water with your friends, is a protected right for all of us, although it would probably serve us better if we kept our mouths shut a bit more, speaking for myself, that is! We have the freedom to worship without fear of persecution. We have the freedom to come and go as we please. The list could go on and on, and most of us probably don't realize what a blessing some of our rights are since we don't understand the persecution and lack of rights in other countries.
2. Family is one of the greatest blessings I have. I was reading a book about ways to survive autoimmune diseases, and one chapter dealt with establishing a support group. I was able to completely skip that chapter because I have a healthy support group in the form of my mother, my husband, my kids, and even the grandkids help grandma get up off the couch! Mike is my advocate, my encourager, my moral support, my should to cry on, and the guy who is always willing to run stuff up and down the basement steps. He accompanies me to doctor's appointments, he cooks what he knows I need to eat to get healthier, and he also gives me "the look" when I am not being a good girl. I am confident that my mother seldom misses a day praying for all of her kids, and probably her grandkids too. I am so very blessed in this area, and if I had no other blessings to count, this one would be enough!
3. I have no idea why God chose to plunk me down in the middle of nowhere, but I am so thankful that he did. I like our little town, and by almost any standard it is a little town, population 250 on a good day! Crime is almost non-existent unless you count the occasional speeder, and once in a while something bigger, but not all that big by national standards. In Springview, no one suffers alone. When misfortune or sorrow comes to visit, so do the neighbors, bearing cakes and casseroles and, most importantly, words of encouragement and a shoulder to cry on. And, when lady luck has frowned upon me and my car breaks down, I can walk almost anywhere I want to go.
4. I have a "dream job". No, it's not perfect but it comes with a steady paycheck, some pretty nice benefits, it's right across the street from my house, and it's a job with the kind of of work I enjoy doing. There aren't a lot of great paying jobs around here, and many people have to drive out of town to their jobs, adding an hour or two to their day, so working right in my own hometown is definitely a blessing.
5. I know that my health issues are the main reason reason I complain, but I am still warm and above ground, I am still able to do most everything I want to do, nothing hurts when I don't move, and none of my ailments are fatal. When we were at the Mayo Clinic in March, I was astounded by the condition of some of the patients, and yet they were still smiling and making an effort to improve their condition. I'd say they had more to complain about than to be thankful for, but they still smiled through it all.
6. This might seem kind of material, but I am thankful for my home. It's not a mansion or the nicest home in town, but I love the homeyness of my home. Most of the time it needs more attention than it gets in the form of dusting and vacuuming and tidying up, but it keeps the rain and snow off our heads, it breaks the wind, and keeps a fairly even temperature for us to be comfortable. It is a sanctuary from the world and a place where we live our private lives. This house, which we have made into our home, is now over 100 years old and has been occupied by at least four other families that I know of, and has hopefully been a sanctuary for all of them.
So these six categories should get anyone in the mood to be thankful. And we haven't even talked about a safe and steady food supply, the clothes on our backs and the clothes crammed into our closets, decent medical care, the cars we drive, the money we have to spend on non-necessities, and the list goes on and on.
I have one last thing I want to express gratitude for, a God that never leaves us or forsakes us, who is the Provider of all that we require in life and then some. We allowed God to enter our lives 38 years ago, and in that time He has provided more than we could ask or imagine. Even if the first 6 items didn't exist or we couldn't consider them blessings, God would still be the greatest blessing!
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