Thanksgiving

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Thanksgiving: the act of giving thanks; a prayer expressing gratitude; a public acknowledgement or celebration of divine goodness.

I know I still have part 2 to write from the last post, but being the week of Thanksgiving, I really wanted to focus on being thankful and recognizing all that God gives and blesses me with. Sometimes it is really hard in times of pain or tribulations to be thankful and focus on what we do have, rather than what we do not have. I am thankful for so much, God is amazing and gives so much, even when we don't deserve it. While writing this I am listening to two of my favorite songs. I encourage you to take a timeout before you read this post or before you take your own time of thanksgiving to listen to these songs.

1) "I Thank You" Rebecca St James- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70ImW1nEWpQ&feature=related

2) "Praise You In The Storm" Casting Crowns

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHdcyue0bSw

I just love Rebecca St James in general. She has so many songs that hit so close to my heart, relating so much to my life. In this song she just pours out all her thanks to God, for everything. She recognizes that we may not always feel like God is with us, and we may have times of doubt or loneliness, but if we just stop and focus on Him we will remember that He is always with us, blessing us, loving us, and believing in us. We should continue to hold on to Him and thanking Him.

And I love this song by Casting Crowns because it talks of how we all will have storms and pain, that is part of life and it is how God teaches us, strengthens us, and helps us grow closer to Him. God doesn't promise us an easy life; no, He tells us life will be hard. James says to have joy whenever trials occur, not IF they occur (James 1:2). This song reminds us that we will shed tears, our hearts will break, but God is there with us. We should continue to thank Him and praise Him, for he will help us through.

"Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name." Psalm 100:4

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Philippians 4:6

God has blessed me with an amazing family and very caring, supportive friends. My family is always there for me when I need them, I love them very much and thank God for giving them to me. I also feel very blessed for the friendships God has given me. I thank God for all my friends and I want to also thank all my friends for giving me your friendship. Thank you for caring for me and for being there for me. We should feel loved and valued because of what God gives us and His love for us. I know He has given me my family and friends for their love and support. I encourage everyone to value your friends and family, thank them for all they do, make sure they know how much you care about them.

After saying that, I also know that we cannot rely on our earthly relationships. We cannot always count on them. We are all sinners, we will let each other down. We need to remember that the only one that will never let us down is God. But we can continue to encourage each other and be there for one another. God gives us relationships and puts us in situations for a reason, we should be thankful to Him for that. He has a plan for us, and although we may not understand that plan, we can draw strength and patience from Him for his will to be revealed. We should not count on others to make us feel valued or appreciated. Even though we should try to make those we care about feel special, we will fail, for we are not perfect. But we should continue to strive to love each other actively, giving others respect and kindness.

Right now, looking out the window, I am so thankful for this typical, snowy Colorado day! It is snowing lightly, making it look perfect and beautiful! And the snowcapped mountains are gorgeous! Unfortunately I have to work this Thanksgiving, but I am thankful for the job God blesses me with. And sometimes God works in mysterious ways. I thought I was going to be very lonely and depressed being alone and working this Thanksgiving, but no, God is great! My family is amazing and going to come spend some time with me, even though I will only be with them a few hours. And an amazing coworker invited us to their big family Thanksgiving dinner. Should be a good Thanksgiving!

Some other interesting things I have been able to do recently include my first day boarding of the season yesterday. Snow was decent. It was fun to get out and ride. I got to go on a nice hike the other day as well. I love Colorado mountains, all times of the year! Very beautiful!

Last weekend I was able to go the Denver Bronco vs Kansas City Chiefs game with a very good friend. That was awesome. Not only did the Broncos play amazing and cream the chiefs, I had amazing seats 15 rows from the endzone! Later, watching the recorded game with my dad, we saw us on TV right after a TD, it was cool. It has been really nice to hang out with some great friends lately.

They are about to score!

Megan and I...GO BRONCOS!!!

The past few weeks I have learned that we need to continually draw nearer to God when we are hurt and lonely. He wants us to stay close to Him. But he also gives us people in our lives to show us His love. Thank you God for all you have given me, for your plan for my life, and for the amazing people in my life you have given me!

"Thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Corinthians 15:57

Contentment, perspective, trust, and patience

Content: feeling or showing satisfaction with one's possessions, status, or situation

Perspective: looking through; seeing clearly; the capacity to view things in their true relation of relative importance

Trust: assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something; one in which confidence is placed; dependence on something future or contingent; something committed or entrusted to one to be used or cared for in the interest of another

Patient: bearing pains or trials calmly or without complaint; manifesting forbearance under provocation or strain; not hasty or impetuous; steadfast despite opposition, difficulty, or adversity

I have been feeling distant in my relationship with God lately. Many times I try to handle my life on my own, instead of trusting and relying on God to lead me, guide me, and give me strength. I realized I needed some time to myself and with God to get some perspective back in my life. Some issues I know I have been dealing with involve these four words: contentment, perspective, trust, and patience. It is hard to focus on one of these words without the others coming into play as well. But for this first blog I am going to focus on the first two: contentment and perspective. One can definitely not go without the other.


I love Colorado, I love that I was born and raised in Colorado, and truly feel at home in Colorado. There is so much to do in Colorado and there are so many beautiful days to take advantage of! I love my parents house and property, its in the trees, no neighbors in site, mountains right behind the house. And I also love that I can hike or 4-wheel right from our backyard. There is a special place I like to go to when I just need time to myself and with God. A place I can go to be alone, to think, get perspective. This place is my spot only, only to be shared with God; it is my special place. Although we should feel close to God wherever we are, this is where I go when I really need some quality time with Him. Today I needed some time to myself and with God. It was a gorgeous day to take the 4-wheeler out and meditate on His word. I did have some specific things I was focusing on, but that's the interesting thing with God, he is unpredictable. We may know what we need to focus on during our quiet time, but then he can lead us down a whole new path and teach us things we never knew we needed to be taught. This is what happened to me today. God taught me a little bit about contentment and perspective today. My mom is letting me borrow this amazing book called "Calm My Anxious Heart," by Linda Dillow. I just read the first few pages and have already learned so much!


I know I have an anxious heart. I know I am consistently wanting more adventure, to do and see more. Sometimes I try to control my life, and the more I try to control it, the more anxious my heart gets. I may find happiness in many things, but true happiness comes from God. Happiness does not come from things we do for ourselves, but from how we act and the love we show others. Happiness and contentment do not come from what happens on the outside; from our circumstances, feelings, or from other people. True contentment is a state of the heart, it happens in our souls. Paul states; "I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength." (Philippians 4:11-13) This is an amazing piece of scripture! Paul wrote this while he was imprisoned. Most of us do not live lives more difficult than the life Paul lived. Yet, Paul managed to have more contentment than I am sure all of us do. Paul realized that the source of contentment comes from God, Christ will provide us with the strength we need to be content. He does not promise us happiness, for if we were always happy, would we continue to seek strength from God? No. As James says, "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance." (James 1:2-3) Like Psalms states, we grow in our faith when we make it through the valleys so that we can reside on the mountains, feeling close to him. But it is through the strength of God that will help us get through the valleys. And with God's help, we can make it through trials, we can be content during our times in the valley, and times on the mountain. (Psalms 23:1-4) James also continues to say that when we make it through times of trial, we grow and mature in our faith. When we seek God in all circumstances, he will give us wisdom. We must not doubt God, we must persevere and understand that God tests us and puts us through trials to teach us so that we may become stronger. We must not doubt God, but have faith in Him.

How can we be joyous through our trials? How can we have joy when we do not have contentment? Our trials James speaks of are not troubles we put ourselves through due to sin. They are our afflictions, persecutions, and sicknesses. They are everyday problems happening to everyday people. To find joy in these trials we should remember to accept them as they are: schools of instruction for our soul. With God's help, we can learn precious lessons from our difficult times. We should not doubt God in the situations he puts us in. We all struggle with doubt. People let us down and cause us to doubt, but God will never let us down. He is always there for us, and will take care of us in our trials, circumstances, and relationships with others even when they let us down. Instead of lacking confidence, we must trust God and lean on HIs strength and understanding so that we may be content with the situation He has put us in and the blessing He has given us.

We may lose sight of being content with what we have because we may feel anxious, as if we want things to happen quicker than they are happening. We may feel God is moving very slow in His plans for us. When we start trying to control our lives and make things happen when we want them to happen, we are not trusting God, and we are not content. The Bible says that God has ultimate control, He is the master of all things. (1 Timothy 6:15) We must let God be in control of our lives in this out-of-control world. We shouldn't let anxiety, greed, and a faulty focus to keep us from a content heart. We must keep our perspective focused on God and loving Him and others. We must understand our perspective of circumstances, ourselves, our roles, and our relationships can change; but look through these and see clearly what God is teaching us. We must keep an eternal perspective, try to see our lives and evaluate what is important through His viewpoint.

Some ideas to help one stay content include these simple things to remember day to day:
1) never allow yourself to complain about anything-- not even the weather
2) never picture yourself in any other circumstances or someplace else
3) never compare your lot with another's
4) never allow yourself to wish this or that had been otherwise
5) never dwell on tomorrow--remember that (tomorrow) is God's, not ours



God made me who I am, and I am confident in who he made me. I will always have the desire to do more and see more, but I also need to be content with the present and the circumstances I am in. I need to remember to continually draw my strength from Him, and not lean on my own understanding.