GRATITUDE AND THANKFULNESS - THE GRACE OF SEEING GOD BEHIND EVERYTHING

 

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"We don't need more to be thankful for,

we just need to be more thankful."

Author Unknown 

Gratitude as defined is .....
the quality of being thankful;  readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.
Thankfulness is .....
warm friendly feelings of gratitude, appreciativeness, gratefulness, gratitude.
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As you can see, they are close cousins and run on the same engine of appreciation. I still recall what my mother pointed out to me some years ago when I was just a kid in pigtails with a glaring gap up my front teeth... she would say ----
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"Always be thankful, not only because you have to, but because you see beyond the gift --- to the true Giver of the gift."
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Thank you is not just a word nor a show of politeness and good manners. It is understanding and seeing far beyond the person standing before you doing the good you receive. Because in truth, he is simply the carrier, conduit, or channel of good and blessings and miracles which a Higher Presence wants to gift you with. Thank you is acknowledging the power of the Divine.
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And because we also know that the same Higher Being works in ways beyond our limited knowledge, so when things come to us wrapped in awe and magnificence way beyond our human understanding, these entirely and without a doubt point our eyes, minds, and hearts back to Him. Gratitude is the grace of understanding His magnificent work in our ordinary tiny mundane lives.
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As mom would simply put it --- 'We are simply tools for good in God's loving hands.'
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On this note, I would like to thank you -- my blogspot family and community -- for being there and tirelessly appreciating what I do. I hope that you enjoy the writing as much as I do writing it.
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May God bless you and your family with everything good far more than your hearts can hold. In Christ I pray. 

KINDNESS MAKES FOR A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE

We often hear talk about somebody else’s bloopers, blunders, faults, bad fortune, inadequacies, failures, or bad luck. But why call attention to what others cannot do, failed to do, and are unable to do? It’s bad enough for that person to know that he has failed but to be reminded of it so often really sucks. Gossip and gossiping is a killer. It can hurt. It destroys with just one spoken nasty unkind word, just as easy as that. Well, what’s said about another person may be true or untrue but that’s not our problem. The whole point is why need or bother to talk about it? If it‘s not going to help the other person, just be quiet.

But do speak up about anything and everything which is GOOD, TRUE, NOBLE, WORTHY, and PRECIOUS. For instance -----

-The girl next door who comes home with her pay check with groceries in tow and with her mom’s favorite dish for dinner in her hand. In the rat race of modern pursuits, sometimes those simple endearing homespun values may be pushed far back or even get lost.

-That nondescript guy in his cubicle at the far end of the hall helping you photocopy fifty pages of your boss’s monthly report without your asking him to. Such unselfish and thoughtful gesture is a rare treasure to find in a corporate jungle.

-A friend who volunteered to stay with your sick child in the hospital to have you come home and rest. A friend who doesn’t mind getting involved in your family cares and woes is the real friend we all truly need.

-The vendor who helped push your car stalled in the center of busy traffic onto the safe side of the road. That’s the kind of person who unwittingly restores our trust and faith in the basic goodness of man.

-Or that 70 year old man who nobly lives a life alone and lonely but doesn’t complain; in fact, he is the cheeriest old man in your neighborhood. He puts us to shame with our pointless grumbling and complaining over the difficulties of life and living.

These and many more are what we should look out for, admire, praise, encourage, and extol. Shout it from the roof tops -- Tell everybody how wonderful this or that person is; how he or she made your life comfortable, pleasant, cheery, funny; or how you were encouraged, strengthened, inspired in your darkest moments; or how he made you feel human and worthy when everybody else gave up on you.

Truly we can make a difference in other people’s lives. Not harp on something that breaks up their world and shatters it to pieces. Rather with one that builds up courage, esteem, hope, joy, and faith.

KINDNESS -- that is all it takes to make them look good and feel good. It’s just a simple show of kindness but, believe me, it means the whole world to that person.

(This post I dedicate to all the kind people in my blog life in my blog world – for all the kindness I’ve received in thought, word, and deed. The sketch above is inspired by you. I pray God continue to pour out blessings upon you and your loved ones.)