Giving thanks...

Hi friends,

I've been reading a book recently which has challenged me on the practice of giving thanks - both to God and to one another in community. The uncomfortable truth is that I don't give thanks as often as it is needed. Whether it is busyness, self-centredness, forgetfulness, or entitlement, there are many reasons why we fail to give thanks to God for all his many blessings, and to one another for the ways in which they bless us. 

I once heard a preacher say that anything we are not grateful for is something that we think we are entitled to, and many years later I've never forgotten that. In a world that is focused so much on what we are entitled to, what our rights are, fulfilling our deepest desires, it is easy to lose sight of the fact that we are actually entitled to nothing really. Everything, including our every breath, is a gift from God. I've heard that it is often the poorest countries and communities that actually exude the most joy and gratitude, because they are grateful for every small blessing. What a challenge to so many of us who have so much we forget to be grateful for.

As I was looking at Scriptures on gratitude, I found this one in Psalm 145, which says that all the Lord's works will give thanks to him, and it made me wonder: if the animals and stars and trees can give thanks to the Lord, why am I falling short? I don't know how a deer or a fox or a butterfly give thanks to the Lord (something to look forward to finding out in the new heaven and the new earth I think!), but I do know that for humans to give thanks it requires words. We need to open our mouths in speech or song, or we can write down our thanks in a journal or our Bible or on a keyboard and screen. So I'm making a commitment that I want to grow in gratitude and express my thanks more and more frequently. What about you? What would you say your gratitude quotient is like at the moment? 

I created the background on this page with acrylic paints and the new Grunge Gears stencil with my Gel Press plate, which was fun. The animals from Fur-Ever Friends were stamped on card then die-cut and watercoloured. I stamped some grass from Nature Silhouettes along the bottom of the page before gluing on the die-cut animals. The text was stamped with a combination of Faith Phrases, Women of Praise, Boss Lady Alpha, and School Days Alpha. 

Let's be people to commit to grow in gratitude, so that it overflows out of our hearts and our mouths.

Be blessed...

x Amy x