An Attitude Of Gratitude

Give Thanks

Is it just me, or have you noticed a general lack of gratitude in people?  What is up with that?  It seems that people are taking for granted even the basic freedoms that we have in this country.  Those are not rights…they are privileges that have been paid for with blood.

Gratitude goes a long way with me, so I try to practice what I preach.  Here are just a few things I am thankful for:

Number 1.  I love God and am so thankful that He does not give me what I deserve.  What I deserve is judgment, but what He gives me is grace.  That is AMAZING to me and I am eternally grateful to God for that.

Number 2.  We live in a great country and have so much to be thankful for. If you ever have the chance to travel internationally, it will drive that point home to you.  Don’t take for granted what we have.  Freedom isn’t free. It was bought and paid for with many lives.

Number 3.  I have a great wife.  She is a perfect help-mate and soul-mate.  I am so thankful that God brought her into my life.  I just wish it had been about 45 years ago.  THAT would have saved me a lot of headaches.  LOL

Number 4.  I am thankful for the ability to work.  I love to work, to create, to give, and to serve others.  Work is a form of worship.  It is not just an activity.  It is a purpose that we fulfill.

Number 5.  I am thankful for life.  What an incredible gift we have been given.  Because I am truly grateful, I want to have a life of significance.  I want to be a giver, not a taker.  When I leave this world, I want to leave it a better place.

Are you a thankful person?  Do you thank God for the blessings you have in life?  Be thankful for the little things.  When you start to count your blessings, you will realize that despite the hardships you face, and the trials you go though, you still have a lot to be thankful for.  Give thanks.  Show gratitude.  You can be bitter….or you can be better.  Your choice.

I love the quotes from Zig Ziglar: “Get a check-up from the neck up, and get rid of stinkin thinkin.”  If you are not grateful, ask yourself “Why?”  Life is short.  Don’t waste it.  You can change the way you think. Give thanks.  Having a grateful heart will mend some of the broken relationships you face, and help you to learn the secret of success…serving God, and serving others. When you learn to be grateful, you learn how to give abundantly.  You can be stingy and live for yourself, or you can be grateful and sow life into others.  In the end, it will be what you are remembered for both here and when we stand before God.

Shalom!

Dan Skognes

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