Learn To Count . . . Your Blessings, That Is!

When I didn’t like my food, Mother would always remind me that there are a lot of hungry kids in the world who don’t have food. It was a ploy to get me to eat my food. Usualy, reluctantly I would eat my food. It’s true, of course. There are so many blessings we have in America that we take for granted.

During my period of homelessness that lasted about seven and a half months, I learned what a great blessing it is to have a roof over your head. When sufficient money finally came in to rent the bottom of a duplex, I felt like I had died and went to heaven.

In my new place, I didn’t have a bed. I spread a couple blankets on the floor of the largest bedroom, and there I slept, feeling like a king. For three weeks I would spend extended times just sitting in the living room and looking around me in wonder. I had a home again!

The things we take for granted are wonderful blessings from God.

“Count your blessings, name them one by one,” is the line from the old hymn. When my friend unexpectedly contracted bell palsy and couldn’t paint (he is an established artist), he sat down at his kitchen table and tearfully wrote a list of all the wonderful blessings God had given him. The list numbered nearly thirty items, and he shed more tears when he realized anew the things he took for granted in life. It changed his outlook completely.

When my brother lost his left hand in an accident, he turned into a new person. Why? He realized that he might have died, and now his appreciation for life was greatly magnified. When my sister broke down in tears after the accident, he said to her, “I still have my right hand.”

His new appreciation for life was demonstrated when he first came home from the hospital. The first thing he did was to get on his lawnmower and begin to mow the lawn. But shortly into the project a belt came off under the mower. He managed to get it back on with his good hand and the help of his foot. Then he finished the job.

Adversity makes us better when we respond to it with a postive attitude, so James says that we should thank God even for the difficult things that life deals us.

A positive attitude and hard work can change us from losers to winners in life. Some of the most successful people have come from unbelievably difficult circumstances, overcoming them with determination and a positive attitude.

Please Help Us Keep Serving You.

PLEASE MAKE A FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION TODAY.

We thank you for your support!

Photo taken by Lorraine