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Gratitude

by Andrea M. Elston

There is always a mixed amalgam of feelings that accompany the ending of one season and the beginning of another. The end of summer is no exception. No one can quite capture in words the bitter-sweet emotions that come with the thoughts of saying goodbye to warm weather, vacations, and freedom from routine, with the anticipation of the upcoming school year: new books (does anything beat that “new book” smell?), new friends, new knowledge, new experiences, and new routines. Whether you are experiencing this yourself or vicariously through a child, this time of year can cause a sense of loss and sadness and even fear. I have found that the most effective way to treat these emotions before they take over is through gratitude.

Paul says in his letter to the Ephesians: …(Give) thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ…” (5:20 ESV)

Be grateful for all things as a gift from God.

Do you see the people in your life as a gift from God? 

Do you see the experiences in your life as a gift from God? 

 Thanksgiving is applying value to something and someone. Those that you value will sense it! That is why the simple act of applying thanksgiving to the people in your lives will transform your relationships.

Maybe this summer didn’t go quite as you had planned and your feelings toward summer have been tainted by illness, loss of a job, a sudden move, or a damaged relationship. Or maybe this season had some of the best moments of your life so far and you see the beginning of the school year as a force threatening to take away all that is good and pleasing and comfortable. Whatever your situation, I urge you to view the events of the last few months through the lens which God intended… gratitude. God is the author and the giver of life, each one of our breaths is authored by Him. As His child and as a follower of His Son, that is how we should live our lives.

A famous quote from Cicero states: “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others.” That is comforting and convicting at the same time! If we are to see ourselves as virtuous, or at least aspire to be, we have to start with gratitude, and all other virtues will be birthed from it.

Philippians 4:6 “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” (NIV-emphasis mine)

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It Was Just a Little Thing

by M. N. Kollar

There are those little things that end up being big things. Your car gave you trouble starting and you missed the doomed flight. That’s big. That was God’s hand at work in your life and you know it. That was no whisper, that was a shout that shook you to your knees.

But then there are the little things that just end up being… little things. Maybe you are running late and getting flustered because you can’t find your phone and then it rings. It’s not even your boss, it’s a wrong number. Some people call these events ‘coincidences.’ We, as Christ followers, are admonished to not believe in ‘luck’ or in ‘coincidences,’ not while we are sitting in God’s hand.

Do we really need to search every little thing for traces of Jesus? How do we keep our eyes on Jesus and keep from losing our minds by overthinking everything? There is a balance to be struck, certainly. Maybe our brothers and sisters in cloistered communities are able to keep Jesus always in focus and see his influence in every area of their lives but it’s not so easy for the rest of us. Children, jobs, chores all take our time and our attention away, making it too hard to maintain our proper focus and too easy to speed past those little things without a thought.

If you are working to reframe your day, your life and your lens in order to achieve a consistently biblical worldview…but not quite there yet…the club welcomes you. Until we reach that level, it is in the quiet, contemplative moments that we can look back over our day and see His divine hand at work. Quiet moments.

With everything we know about self-care, most no longer see it as a luxury or as being selfish. Instead, we’ve come to know it as a vital component to physical and mental health. Christians also know this is soul-care time; spiritual health is vital. We use quiet times for powerful prayer, a casual talk with our Creator or just listening for that still, small voice.

‘Reflective time’ might be a more accurate descriptor of what we need to actively carve out so we can look back at our day. This is not something you can put off until tomorrow as you have to reflect on today, today. The little things are already small in our big today, but tomorrow they will be like grasping after gossamer dreams. It may take some practice and discipline, but it goes a long way toward cultivating a grateful heart.

What do you find when you reflect on the little things of your day? If you are having a hard time finding Jesus and His handiwork in your day then what does that mean for you as a Christian? It may mean just a focus shift for some of us. There are many pieces of art that show a dejected person walking while his unseen angels battle demons just behind him. If we see the demons as anything from depression to traffic, then we can understand how powerful that imagery is. We whisper ‘Thank you, Jesus’ when we make it into the grocery line right before the person with the full cartload but forget what kind of hurry we would have been in if we were caught behind them. We forget the panicked drive to after school pick-up that never happened.

Seeking His hand at work throughout our day can reveal things about ourselves and about God that can really empower us and help us learn to trust Him. That searching eye needs training and looking for Him in those little things can help bring Him into focus in our every day.

 

Maxine Kollar is an author whose new book series “The Channel 24 Chronicles” is being published by Shine-A-Light Press. The first book, “Perched for Progress” is expected to be released in the Fall of 2020.