Yesterday I was putting up our Christmas tree and all the branches were tangled and matted from being in a box all year and, as a lot of you probably know, fixing all those branches to look realistic can be highly frustrating!!
While I was getting impatient, mom walked in the living room and I exclaimed, "You see this, mom? This is my life! Full of stupid, complicated branches for me to untangle!" her answer was something along the lines of, "Yup, mine too."
I know that I should be thankful this week, but as more things mount the less thankful I feel. I thought long and hard about this whole "thankfulness" deal.
What was it about anyway? What good did it do? Would it really hurt to tell God thank you even though I am not doing okay right now? I mean, since when did Jesus ever complain about his life? If he could do what he did for me, who am I to gripe about my problems?
But then I wondered...if he wants me to thank him...then he must have a reason. What was the reason? Did he just like hearing how great he is? Not that he isn't great, but I would have a hard time trusting someone with that attitude, whether they were aware of their amazing ability or not.
I came to the conclusion that he wants us to thank him because its simply the normal thing to do. What do you say when someone does you a favor or gives you a gift? You say thank you.
God has done a lot for us. Waaaay more than we deserve. So whether our branches are still tangled or if they are beginning to straighten out, we need to praise him in spite of our circumstances. Not because he wants to take from us, but because he knows it will increase our joy and get our focus off of our problems and back on him, where we can be content with what we have. And with him, we have a lot.
In the meanwhile, he will help us untangle the branches.
Happy (late) Thanksgiving everyone!
Every breath, every good gift, restoration, promise...what a mighty King!
ReplyDeleteThe tangled branches, the pressure to fix them and get them straight and the pressure we put upon ourselves to fix some messes. What a great parallel! So relatable. I just returned from a walk on this beautiful day, listening to sweet music and was thinking "why am I not experiencing joy in this moment?" Holy Spirit reminded me that it was because I was focusing on all the problems and how I might untangle or fix them. Sometimes I, being mere human, am just not "the one for the job". Sometimes I have to accept that God is going to be "the one" for a particular mess. If I would spend more of my mind on Him and who He says I am in Him, my inner peace would return, instead of inner turmoil and chaos. It is hard to try not to fix everything from the pressure I put upon myself or allow others to put upon me, but I guess I should trust God more than I trust my own efforts. Thanks God, for loving and accepting me, even on my worst days. Well said, Gabby! Great thought provoking post!! :)
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