Closing of the Year ~ So Many Blessings

Greetings Dear Reader,

It is true that the best way to combat worry is to ponder the good things we have.  I am not just talking about the idea of counting blessings.  I am speaking of a real inventory of what we have in our lives that is good.

I hear people talk about all the things they do not have.  They list the things they long for or wish to possess.  I sometimes talk about my wishes and dreams but never do I want to be the person who loses my joy because of something I do not have.  I will dive deep for a moment.

Giving the impression that I have it all together is not honest.  I write this blog every day because I do not have it assembled and running.  I struggle daily with sin and self-esteem.  I fight loneliness and regret.  My applications here are to make me more determined to follow Christ and not to say that I am good or an example for you.  My invitation to apply what I do is so that you have yet another source of faith and following. 

I am also not Pollyanna about it.  I know that who I am is a crooked stick and needs shaping into the proper staff for others to lean on when needed.  So, in the midst of all of that, I choose to be grateful for what I have and prayerfully ask for the Father to put the proper desires in my heart.  If prayer yields our heart’s desire then I wish for those desires to be based on what the Father is helping me become. 

I know that the Father gives me so much that is so good.  When I begin to feel that I do not have what I think I need or what I want, I must focus on that.  I must tally the many ways the Father provides for me and follow the Son in shaping my desires.  Most of the things I long for are too personal to enumerate here.  You know about Project Tortoiseshell and my desire to only write for a living.  You are free to pray for me if you wish concerning those things.

What I would rather have is to see clearly the many blessings I have and use them wisely in seeking the Kingdom and the righteousness of the Father.   I want to follow the Son as closely as possible.  Instead of seeking more blessings, I wish to be a blessing to others.  For a brief period, this year I was pursuing instead of following.  The pain of that difference will last for a while.

When the sadness of that error tries to overcome me, Dear Reader, I will recount all the good things I have and how little I deserve anything good.  When people I love say words that hurt me, I will recall what the Father says about me.  I refuse to fail to count the many blessings in my life and so dishonor the provision of God.   I will use my feelings of lack to motivate my gratitude.  I do not ask you to write them down, but it may be time for another blessings inventory.  I know that I needed one.  I may not have all I want but I have more than I need.  That is plenty.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a homeowner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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Every human story is part of the great story that leads to the Father getting everything back to Good.

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An inventory of blessings and a recounting of what is good in our lives leads us to gratitude and that is a beautiful place to be.