Today at work we are having our company Thanksgiving dinner. I'm skipping the walk today to cook. I'm making cinnamon vanilla sweet potatoes with bacon and deep fried green beans. So though it's a week early, my thoughts are turning toward Thanksgiving.
This year I have less and more. I have less of the things that don't matter: clothes, possessions, money in the bank, time watching tv, junk food in the house. And I have more things to be thankful for. I am more aware of the contrast. I see the people on the street, trying to sleep huddled by the wall of the Circle K, and I am thankful for the tiny apartment that no one comes to visit because there isn't even room for a couch. As I drive by every bus stop, I am thankful for my old car, bought for cash from a junk yard that keeps faithfully running and getting me where I need to go.
As I pass the payday loan place to pull into my office parking lot, I am thankful for a good job with bosses that appreciate me, co-workers I get along with and a paycheck every two weeks. I could compare that paycheck to that of some of my friends and find something to complain about, but this experiment is teaching me that mine is more than enough to meet my needs and the needs of others if I use it correctly.
As I drive past the cemetery on Oracle, I'm reminded that most of my family is still living and I'm thankful for the time I have with them here and now. I'm thankful that most of the ones who are no longer living, I will see again one day.
And more than ever, I am aware of the great sacrifice my Savior made for me and I am so thankful God loved me enough to send his Son to die for me. I'm thankful Jesus loved me enough to stay on the cross when He didn't have to and I'm thankful the Holy Spirit is here every day to direct and comfort me.
Yes, this Thanksgiving is different for me. I have much less and so much more... and I am thankful.
This year I have less and more. I have less of the things that don't matter: clothes, possessions, money in the bank, time watching tv, junk food in the house. And I have more things to be thankful for. I am more aware of the contrast. I see the people on the street, trying to sleep huddled by the wall of the Circle K, and I am thankful for the tiny apartment that no one comes to visit because there isn't even room for a couch. As I drive by every bus stop, I am thankful for my old car, bought for cash from a junk yard that keeps faithfully running and getting me where I need to go.
As I pass the payday loan place to pull into my office parking lot, I am thankful for a good job with bosses that appreciate me, co-workers I get along with and a paycheck every two weeks. I could compare that paycheck to that of some of my friends and find something to complain about, but this experiment is teaching me that mine is more than enough to meet my needs and the needs of others if I use it correctly.
As I drive past the cemetery on Oracle, I'm reminded that most of my family is still living and I'm thankful for the time I have with them here and now. I'm thankful that most of the ones who are no longer living, I will see again one day.
And more than ever, I am aware of the great sacrifice my Savior made for me and I am so thankful God loved me enough to send his Son to die for me. I'm thankful Jesus loved me enough to stay on the cross when He didn't have to and I'm thankful the Holy Spirit is here every day to direct and comfort me.
Yes, this Thanksgiving is different for me. I have much less and so much more... and I am thankful.
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