O my soul, bless God.
From head to toe, I’ll bless his holy name!
O my soul, bless God,
don’t forget a single blessing!
He forgives your sins—every one.
He heals your diseases—every one.
He redeems you from hell—saves your life!
He crowns you with love and mercy—a paradise crown.
He wraps you in goodness—beauty eternal.
He renews your youth—you’re always young in his presence.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
When we took the children to church today, we told them that we had “surprises” in the back of the car that we would give them after lunch. They tried to guess what the “surprises” were…but there was no dinosaur or crackers. But there were books and videos – and a new (to them) board game to play. There were also two bags of “Halos” - or as they called them, “baby oranges”! Since this will be a short school week because of the Thanksgiving holidays, the children will have an extended “vacation” at home, and the snacks and videos will no doubt come in handy!
In her book, One Thousand Gifts*, Ann Voskamp talks about her aunt, who traveled the world as an airline attendant. The aunt would visit Voskamp and her children from time to time. The aunt said that of all of the places she had visited…all of the things she had seen…one of the most joyful experiences had been that of rolling a ball back and forth on the floor with Voskamp’s toddler daughter. She wrote Ann Voskamp a letter and told her that she had never seen such happiness in all her travels…that this simple experience had brought her a glimpse of “wild joy” that she would never forget.
Voskamp noted that the secret to such joy lies in perspective. To a child, everything is large and wonderful. As I watch our little nephews and nieces discover new things, I am reminded of how “wonder”-filled the simplest of joys used to be for most of us. As we grow older, we seem to grow blind to many of the blessings that are right before our eyes.
So as we enter this week of Thanksgiving and begin to “count our blessings,” let’s read this scripture passage often and remind ourselves of all that God does for us. Let’s remember that every one of our sins are forgiven…that every one of our diseases are healed. Let’s never forget that Hell is not on our list of places to visit…that a “paradise crown” awaits us – and in the meantime, we wear His crowns of love and mercy. Let’s remind ourselves that we are forever beautiful – and young in God’s presence (which is all that truly matters)! We are clothed in His goodness.
God meets all of our needs…and He peppers our lives with incredible blessings. As we count the more obvious gifts like those listed in this scripture passage...let’s also list some of the “baby oranges” and “videos” that surprise and delight us. Let’s thank God for the friend who showed up right when we needed him/her the most. Let’s be grateful for a foggy, misty Sunday afternoon…or a glorious sunrise or sunset. Let’s When we can thank God for moments when something or someone makes us laugh or smile…and for times when we experience sadness or sorrow – and live through it!
Let’s thank God for smelly socks to wash and a dirty house to clean…for a second job to go to that leaves us dog tired but gives us adequate money to pay the rent…for a boring and/or difficult classes to attend so that we can get a degree or learn a trade and become self-sufficient. Let’s thank Him for caregivers who help us when we are no longer able to do things for ourselves…and for those who have “been there, done that” and can counsel us through the same experiences…for a few minutes spent in the floor rolling a ball to a toddler and listening to him/her squeal with excitement.
Go even deeper and thank God for the beauty of intricate patterns in your pet’s fur…that amazingly unique freckle on your kids’ nose…and the predictably irritating way that your sibling or friend is habitually late. In other words, open your eyes and ears…use ALL of your senses to fully acknowledge God’s presence and blessings in even the most mundane parts of your everyday life - and offer a heartfelt “Thank You!”
A few years ago, there was a trend for some people to say, “Love you – mean it!” – as if those last two words gave credibility to the first two. My challenge for all of us in the days to come is to offer God our gratitude…and to truly mean it! Let’s tell Him - in words and actions - just how much we appreciate all that He does for us…how He blesses us from head to toe. Let’s not miss a single blessing – or a chance to be grateful. How is God blessing YOU these days? Does He know that you appreciate His efforts? Isn’t it time that He did?
©2014 Debbie Robus
* One Thousand Gifts ~ ©2010 Ann Morton Voskamp ~ One Zondervan Press ~ www.zondervan.com
No comments:
Post a Comment