Give Thanks Even If…

“Every problem is a gift. Without them we wouldn’t grow” – Tony Robbins

Imagine being thankful for the difficult times in our lives. Imagine being thankful amidst the pain, the storms, the rain. It’s possible, you know, to be thankful, even if it seems like life is not going as planned. It’s possible to be thankful, even when it hurts. I am glad I learned this lesson. I leaned to give God thanks, amidst the tears, amidst the storms, and through the heartbreaks. I learned that there were so many reasons to give Him thanks.

I learned, because I did this for a season, that if you look only to your circumstances, they will begin to consume you. They will overwhelm you, overcome you. You will feel as though they are bigger than you. But God, the God I know, is bigger than any circumstance that I have ever faced, no matter how great it seemed! Sometimes, in the midst of it all, we forget about that. Sometimes we forget all the reasons we have to be grateful because we see only the troubles surrounding us. I suppose if you only look down, you will stay down.

Psalms‬ ‭121:1-2‬ ‭KJV “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth.”

‭‭‬‬We’re supposed to look up! When we start to look up, our attitudes improve. We can find a reason to smile in the midst of the pain. When we start to look up, we start to regain our strength in the physical and spiritual! When we look up, we can see the sunshine – forget about the rain! Look to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.

There are times I must pause and remind myself to look up, when I find myself overwhelmed by my circumstances. I remember that He didn’t bring me this far to leave me. He is always by my side. Even when I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, He is with me. His rod and His staff, they do comfort me. Therefore, I can

“Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.” Psalms‬ ‭100:4-5‬ ‭KJV‬‬