I am blessed!  Thank You, God.


Four of my blessings!

http://youtu.be/USWD2MQRfTU - Thank You, God

As I began to watch the video above, I almost turned it off because the lyrics were
just "I'm so blessed, I am so grateful for all I have" - over and over again.  But as I
continued to sit quietly listening, I thought about just how blessed I am.  Images of
my family ran through my mind, and I thought "I am so blessed".  I thought about
how safe and warm I felt in my very own bed last night, and I thought "I am so blessed."
As the sweet music continued, tears came to my eyes as I thanked God for all His
blessings.  I am so blessed. 

I hope you won't give up and turn the song off too fast.  Take the four minutes to
experience the gratitude and love that comes into your heart as you remember just
how blessed you are.  It's a great way to begin the day.

Psalm 108 ESV
My heart is steadfast, O God!

I will sing and make melody with all my being!
Awake, O harp and lyre!
I will awake the dawn!


I will give thanks to you, O LORD, among the peoples;
I will sing praises to you among the nations.


For your steadfast love is great above the heavens;
your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be over all the earth!

I love Thanksgiving.  It's a special time to remember how blessed we all are.  It's wonderful to have one day when everyone is remembering and thanking God for His goodness throughout the year. He is so faithful to provide for us and protect us. I want the spirit of Thanksgiving to be part of my every day life. I should be thanking Him for the many, many blessings He just pours down on me and my family, not just on Thanksgiving, but every waking moment.  I want to be more mindful of His goodness.  I want to show my gratitude every day, not just once a year.

Psalm 30:11-12

You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever.


Psalm 34:1
I will extol the LORD at all times; his praise will always be on my lips.


Psalm 50: 14-15
Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High, and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me."


Psalm 69:30
I will praise God's name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving.


Psalm 95:2
Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song.


Psalm 100:4
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.


Psalm 147:7
Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving; make music to our God on the harp.



2 Corinthians 9:11
You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.

Ephesians 5:3-4
But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.


Philippians 4:6
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.


Colossians 2:6-7
So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.


Colossians 3:15
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.
And be thankful.


Colossians 4:2
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.


1 Timothy 2:1
I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone—


1Timothy 4:4-5
For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer.


Hebrews 12:28-29
Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our "God is a consuming fire."

Being thankful is a critical part of the Christian walk. My thankfulness honors God, to be sure.  But something else happens at the same time. When I acknowledge how blessed I am, God gives me a peace that I can't explain.  In the midst of terrible struggles and suffering, if I stop to thank God for all my blessings instead of dwelling on my struggle, the anxiousness and stress seem to melt away.  I find the Peace that surpasses all understanding.  I really feel that peace.  I don't know why I'm surprised at how well counting my blessings works to lift the burden of my heart.  After all, didn't God tell me that would happen?  God spoke this truth through Paul in his letter to the Philippians.

Philippians 4:6-8 ESV
do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Majestic GOD, Your power and majesty are beyond the reach of my

imagination. I am in awe of You and Your supremacy over everything.
I praise You because “Your love reaches to the heavens,
Your faithfulness to the skies. Great is Your faithfulness’.

Thank You for loving me, Father. Because of Your unmatchable love,
I know I can conquer anything You, in Your infinite wisdom, goodness
and love, may allow in my life. I can do all things through Christ, who
continually gives me strength. Thank You, Jesus, for sending Your
Spirit to provide everything I need to face this day.
May You be glorified in my life today and always. Amen.

http://youtu.be/ND7OX5eFQmM - You're My God - Jaci Velasquez


Thank You, God!



Thanking God everyday...
Learning not to sweat the small stuff.

http://youtu.be/omkD5fFdzFQ - Thank You, God


Philippians 4:8-9
Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. 9 The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.


Happy thoughts make my day better. I feel more confident, more capable, more satisfied when I think on things that are honorable, right, pure, lovely and of good repute. Things that are excellent and worthy of praise - these are the things God tells us to dwell on. That's where we will find peace, even when everything in our lives is going crazy and feels out of control.

I stumbled onto this song by Francesca Battistelli and it made me smile. I can relate to every line. I can get stressed out over the smallest things. There's a lesson in the song. I hope I can remember it today.
I'm Blessed!


http://youtu.be/pqqdA8LHN7I -  This is the Stuff - Francesca Battistelli

I lost my keys in the great unknown
and call me please 'Cuz I can't find my phone
This is the stuff that drives me crazy
This is the stuff that's getting to me lately
In the middle of my little mess
I forget how big I'm blessed
This is the stuff that gets under my skin
But I gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing
It might not be what I would choose
But this is the stuff You use

45 in a 35
Sirens and fines while I'm running behind
Whoa
This is the stuff that drives me crazy
This is the stuff that's getting to me lately
In the middle of my little mess I forget how big I'm
is the stuff that gets under my skin
But I gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing
It might not be what I would choose
But this is the stuff You use
So break me of impatience
Conquer my frustrations
I've got a new appreciation
It's not the end of the world
Oh Oh Oh

And I've gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing
It might not be what I would choose
But this is the stuff You use

Oh Oh Oh Oh

This is the stuff You use.

Boy, can I relate to this song...
I can let myself get bogged down in the little things that drive me crazy. The more I focus on those things, the larger they become in my mind. But God has given me a great tool to handle those kinds of thoughts. He says "take each thought captive to the obedience of Christ". I don't have to let my whole day be ruined because traffic on Highway 80 comes to a dead stop making Tyler 40 min. late to school! = )

2 Corinthians 10:4-5
for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. 5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,

When things like that happen, I can "capture the thought". Instead of pounding on the steering wheel and getting angry about something I cannot change, I can use that time to count my blessings. I can use that time to pray. I can redeem that bad traffic situation if I make the decision to just "capture the thought".

When I have a negative thought, I can ask myself, "is this a thought that honors God?" If it's not God honoring, then I better not dwell on it.

I love Facebook. It's a wonderful way to stay connected to family and friends. I can "check in" each day and see how everyone is doing, and see what's going on in their lives. I've gotten reconnected with friends from school and stayed connected with friends and family who have moved away. What a blessing Facebook can be!

But just like God can take the worst things and use them for good, the Enemy can take a good thing and use it for evil.

I tend to be a "Pollyanna" - the dictionary defines that as "A person regarded as being foolishly or blindly optimistic. " I confess! I do try to see the glass as "half full" as opposed to "half empty". So it bothers me to see Facebook postings that seem to dwell on the negative. = ( I can watch a negative post become like a snowball rolling down hill. It gathers more and more size and speed as it rolls down, down, down... Everyone has something to add to the negativity. I don't like that. My "Pollyanna" heart yearns for someone to break up that snowball so that it doesn't do any damage to people who might be in it's path. Sometimes, a brave soul steps up and tries to defuse the negative. I can't tell you how refreshing it is to see that one little positive comment in the middle of all the negative. It's like a beam of light shining in the darkness of the moment, melting that snowball.

There's a saying "what you feed grows and what you starve dies". If I "feed" the negative thoughts in my head, before long they are not so little. I can get myself all worked up over the smallest thing.

But if I choose to think on my blessings, those good thoughts flood my mind and give me a much better attitude, and my day becomes much more pleasant and productive. Not only is my day better, my attitude can spill over into the lives of those around me.

Lots of my Facebook Friends use their "status" to share Scriptures and encouraging thoughts. I love that! Those postings bless my day. The negative postings... not so much of a blessing. = (

So today, I choose to be positive. I choose to dwell on God's blessings and not on my "lost keys".

There are much worse things happening in this world than my burning the casserole I had planned for dinner!

I'm blessed beyond measure! The little bumps along the way, well, I'll use them as reminders of all the times I have safe, smooth journeys with any bumps.

And what if the bumps God allows in my life are blessings in disguise? How many times have my "lost keys" kept me from being in the middle of an accident? That 5 extra minutes of searching for my keys may have saved me a terrible wreck.

http://youtu.be/4mmgV6mPvb0 - Blessings - Laura Story


Holy Father, I'm so blessed to be Your child. You are so faithful. You are my Provider and Protector. You rescue me from my human weaknesses every day. Dear Father, thank You for loving me even when I have my little "pitty parties" and spend way too much time thinking about stuff that doesn't really matter. You give me everything I need, yet sometimes I complain that it's not enough. Please forgive me, LORD.


I forget how blessed I am just to be able to have a clean drink of water when I'm thirsty, or food on the table at every single meal. Thank You, God, for providing water and food for me.


Lord, when I see someone with a flat or stalled car on the side of the road, help me to remember the blessing of having a car that is reliable.


And when I wake up my son for school each day, remind me of the enormous blessing of having a healthy child.


Lord, I'm thankful for my job.


I'm thankful for a husband who still loves me after 25 years of marriage.


I'm thankful for my family and my friends.


Most of all, I'm thankful that You love me so much that You sent Your only Son to save me.


So today, Lord, if my computer crashes, if I misplace my keys, if my car runs out of gas, or some other annoying little thing happens, help me to remember all my blessings instead of dwelling on the little negatives. I don't want to be a complainer, Lord. I don't want to be a snowball of negativity. Instead, I want to be full of gratitude and thanksgiving for all my blessings!


Lord, please help me not to let annoying stuff take all my attention away from my many blessings. When I'm tempted to give in to the negativity, show me Your truth. I'm loved by the Creator of the Universe. That blessing by itself cancels out all the bad stuff.


In the Blessed Name of Jesus I pray. This day is for Your Glory! Amen.


S. I had this devotional almost completed but before I could proofread and send it out, I had to stop and take Tyler to school. About 10 minutes into our 35 minute trip, traffic came to a complete stop! It took almost an hour longer to get school than it normally takes.

Hmmm.... maybe that was a test for me. Thankfully, I had just been focusing on not sweating the small stuff, and I used the time to thank God for having a sense of humor. = )