Daily Devotional for December 31, 2010

Romans 1:11
I want to see you and share with you the same blessings that God's Spirit has given me. Then you will grow stronger in your faith.

Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.

This time of year, we often stop to reflect on all that has happened… and what lies ahead of us. For many, this is a time to count our blessings. We seem to have gotten pretty good at counting our blessings... but do we really appreciate how blessed we are?

When we get on the treadmill, do we really appreciate how blessed we are to have two good feet and strong legs to hold us up and propel us forward? When we open the refrigerator and look at that dish of leftover goulash, are we thankful we have food for our belly, unlike millions around the world who will go hungry another day? When we look in the closet and say, “I have nothing to wear,” have we considered those in Haiti and Pakistan and other locations where natural disasters have taken literally everything but the ragged clothes on their backs?

When we thank God for giving us His only Son to die for our sins on the cross, do we stop to truly contemplate what this means? Do we look at our own children and try to imagine letting them be beaten, tortured, and crucified to save people who don’t deserve it and won’t even be born for thousands of years?

This year, as we “ring out the old and ring in the new,” let’s stop for a few minutes, at least, and really count our blessings. Give some serious time to thinking about what God has done for you already – and what is yet to come. Evaluate how you are behaving in return… and where you can make improvements. Don’t just give lip service to counting your blessings this time… really acknowledge them. Then commit yourself to truly living well… to reflecting a blessed life to others and sharing the blessings that God’s Holy Spirit has given you. Grow stronger in your faith this year, and give God all the glory for His every blessing!

©2010 Debbie Robus

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