I know it is not Thanksgiving yet, but we will be traveling and will not have much computer access so I decided to post about one of the things that has helped me immensely through my life and is relevant with Thanksgiving approaching.

Back in the late 80’s, early 90’s I was a HUGE Oprah fan.  I made sure every day when she came on I was  there, the kids were napping and I learned.  One of the things I learned about was an “Attitude of Gratitude”.  I know, this concept was not a new thing to planet Earth, but it was new to me as a young woman, wife, and mother.

My mother used to tell me to eat my food because there were people starving in other countries.  This SHOULD have made me grateful, instead my ungrateful, chubby heart said, “Send it to them, they must like raisins in their oatmeal or rice pudding”.  Not very grateful!  Well as I have now spent 30 years of trying to cultivate a grateful heart I see so much clearer now that it has colored and still colors my life in beautiful ways!

We as Christians should be the shiniest, happiest, most joyful people on the planet.  We should utterly be exploding with LOVE! Jesus died for me, He has given me freedom to do so much more than I can imagine, and freedom from the things that harm me most.  He is there, always there.  He gives me wisdom, insight beyond myself.  He had a purpose for my life even before I was born.  Each day I work on making sure that I am doing that and only that.  I have the freedom to put my wishes, wants, and problems aside.  THEY ARE HANDLED.  HE HAS IT COVERED!

Friends, this is the core of my being at this stage of my life.  I am His and He is mine! On top of this I was born American.  I am very proud to be an American and I know that I have been very privileged to have been raised in a low to middle class family with Christian values.  I have had education, I have been able to voraciously read books.  Books at my disposal since before I could even read.  I am privileged to be here in Nigeria serving people that have not been as privileged as I have been with Earthly things as well as Spiritual leadership.  I get to be here on the ground and see their faces, interact with, teach, and provide things that help people, hopefully generations of people that are created in God’s image will be affected.  I get to see that with my own eyes.  Dan and I have a very large team of supporters and we are privileged that we get THAT job.

I am grateful for the very hard times of learning.  I have found as I look back at areas of my life, that the growth in all areas, mentally, spiritually, emotionally, and relationally have been after making big mistakes, stupid choices, and then learning tools to improve in those areas.  I have learned to apologize first, and that my pride can be one of my biggest obstacles to me being a healthy person.

My point for today is this:  In looking at your day to day life how can you cultivate an attitude of gratitude in your daily walk?  How can you make it an integral part of YOU?