Giving Thanks
By Shelly Burke, Editor and Publisher, Nebraska Family Times
Since Thanksgiving is in November, I’ve decided to make
November the month of “giving thanks.”
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The Bible commands us to be thankful; Psalm 106:1 says, “Give thanks to
the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever.” This command is
repeated in Psalm 107:1 and 136:1. The Bible also tells us that we should be “always giving
thanks…for everything.” (Ephesians 5:20) and that we should “…give thanks in
all circumstances.” (1 Thess. 5:18).
One way to be conscious of giving thanks is to keep a
Gratitude Journal. Research has
shown that people who keep a Gratitude Journal feel overall more optimistic
than people who do not. And “attitude of gratitude” has been linked to better
sleep, a decrease in anxiety, better overall health, and higher satisfaction
with life in general.
Today I am so
thankful for my friends. When I think about friends, I categorize them as to
how I know them: I have church friends, cattle-show friends, Genoa friends,
Columbus friends, friends from the small business group I belong to, college
friends…each group of friends is unique. Today I had the opportunity to
introduce a “church friend” and a “friend from our small business group.” It
was fun to watch them get to know each other; I enjoy introducing friends from
different parts of my life to each other, and watching them (hopefully!) become
friends too.
Ecclesiastes
tells us that “Two
are better than one…for if they fall, one will lift up his fellow (friend).” (Eccles. 4:9). I’ve seen this many times during
the last few years—when a friend experiences a crisis—illness, death in the
family, or other problem, friends come quickly to “life up his (or her!)
fellow.” I’m so thankful that my friends—friends of all “categories”-- have
been there to lift me up during hard times in my life the last few months.
Today I thank God
for you, friends! May He bless you all.
How have friends “lifted
you up” during a difficult time in your life?
(I’m also blogging about
things I’m thankful for in being a mom, at
www.achristianmomsguide.blogspot.com Click to see what I had to be
thankful for after I
dropped a coconut on Morgan’s head!)
