“Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures forever.” Psalm 136:1
Each Sunday night I lead a Bible study for some of my former students who are in jr. high and high school. We gather for a meal, usually pizza and crazy bread. I add a card table to my kitchen table to extend it and we all crowd around. Then we move to my living room where we sing a song or two, share prayer requests, and I give an encouraging word from the Bible.
I tell you this is the highlight of my week. I do a lot of different ministry all week, but nothing brings me greater joy than watching these kids love on each other, pray for each other, and laugh with each other. It’s absolutely beautiful.
The first Sunday of November I taught on offering a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving to the Lord. We decided that each day of November, we would share something we are thankful for in a group text. I wish you were on that group text to see the what they write.
My goal is to help train then in the spiritual discipline of giving thanks. I call it a spiritual discipline because it takes discipline to actually stop whatever you’re doing and take account of your day and give thanks. Sometimes it’s hard to find something to be thankful for. I get it.
I started this practice years ago. I have a journal for each year where I record my blessings. I call it my blessings journal. This is also where I record what I read in the Bible for that day. If it’s a Sunday, I take it with me to church to record my notes from the sermon.
I choose to number my blessings. Kind of like that song, “Count your blessings name them one by one.” My goal is to get over 1,000 each year. So far, I’ve hit that goal. On January 1, I start over with number 1.
I find this is as important to my spiritual growth as reading the Bible or praying. It’s the first thing I do in the morning. I pause. I whisper a short prayer to the Lord about my previous day. And I take an account of my day. Soon I’m writing and smiling. Smiling because that’s what you do when you are reminded of a blessing.
Gratitude is one of the keys to a successful life. I would venture to say it’s the most important key. Well, I guess that depends on how you measure success. For me, it’s the most important key.
Tomorrow, you may be the one getting up early to prepare a big feast. I invite you to pause, whisper a quick prayer to the Lord to remind you of the blessings He gave you yesterday, and take note of them.
Take note of how God has been good to you. Was it the sunrise on your morning walk? Or the way your dog greets you every time you get home from work? Or your niece who texts you and asks you to pick her up from school?
If you struggle to see the blessings, ask the Lord to reveal them to you. He’s pouring out blessings every day. Sometimes we need a little help to see them.
There have been days when my life looked like it was literally falling apart. It was on those days, I needed my blessing journal the most. Because focusing on blessings from God shifted my focus to Him. When I look at how big my God is, my problems get smaller.
Do you practice this spiritual disciple? If not, would you like to see your life change? Start with giving thanks. You can start with a piece of notebook paper from you kid’s stash of school supplies that you bought when school started. Take a moment each morning to reflect on the blessings from the previous day and start recording them. By the time January 1 rolls around you will be neck deep in blessings.
Join me on January 1, with a fresh new journal. Begin with number 1 and see how many blessings you will have by December 31. If this sounds fun to you, let me know in the comments below.
I’m pryaing many blessings over you this holiday week as we focus on Thanksgiving. Enjoy your friends and family. Many blessings!!!
