Wednesday 3 September 2014

Spring, beautiful Spring!


How wonderful!!! Yes, it is that time of the year again!  Here in the other half of the world Spring has sprung!  It is in the air, it is in the way the sun falls merrily upon my face.  The trees are sprouting tender little leaves and my cat is basking in the mellow sun.  It feels as if a window has been opened somewhere in my soul and the fresh breeze is filling every corner, chasing the last gray of the winter out.  It hardly matters that a cold front might be looming ahead, Spring is here, it has shaken Winter's cocoon from its wings!

I love Spring.  The rebirth of the Earth always fascinates me.  I am surrounded by the promise of new and wonderful things to come, I am filled with renewed energy and excitement, I want to drink in the crisp air with huge gulps of joy.  I am ready for new and wonderful projects.  What would it be this season, I wonder. Maybe a new lick of paint for my lounge, fresh bedding or a new craft project?  No, none of that.  This Spring I want to give thanks.  I want to give thanks to my Creator's wonderful mercy and love, the blessings He has bestowed upon me, my family, my friends.  I want to actively live a life of gratitude.  When I look at the world, at all the sadness that we read about every day, strife and war, the horrors of natural disasters, then I am humbled by how much grace we still receive every day out of our Lord's hands.  I feel so small, so undeserving.  It makes me realize how seldom I just give thanks.  So, this Spring it is time for me to reflect on all I have to be grateful for. 

Yes, I know, some of you who are reading this post might feel as if you can't think of anything to be grateful for, maybe you do not feel so particularly blessed.  Maybe you have had to face hardship or sadness, maybe a loss or ill health.  Maybe you have had so many difficult times that you do not believe in blessings any more.  However, I want to tell you, no matter what your circumstances, the Lord is there in it with you, he knows your path.  You are not alone and if you take the time to look, to really search, you will find that one little flower managing to grow in among the thistles and thorns, that one little blessing.  We often mistakenly believe that it is happiness that makes us grateful, but the truth is that it is gratitude that makes us happy.  Mostly we think that blessings are found in the big things in life, but the truth is that it it most often found in the little, seemingly insignificant, things in life; my husband's warmth next to me when I wake up in the morning, the rich aroma of my early morning coffee, the smile on my daughter's face, my dog's excited bark when he sees me.  Once we stop recounting all our problems and start counting our blessings we will be amazed by all we have to be grateful for.

I leave you with a quote by Melody Beattie : " Gratitude turns what we have into enough."

If you flutter by here, please share with us what it is you would like to give thanks for.  I would love to hear from you.

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