Great reminder for me....

I follow a blog of a former colleague at Redlands Christian, Heather Ledeboer. She started her own very successful Cyber company after the birth of her first child (great stuff!). This post was made by a guest blogger (Angela Gifford) on Thanksgiving Day.

"He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me, and he prepares the way so that I may show him the salvation of God." Psalm 50:23

Doesn't your heart just melt when your kids say thank you? I'm reminded of Beth Moore sharing how one of her dauthers used to call for her bottle in the morning, by yelling, "Thank you! Thank you!" from her crib. It honestly made Beth want to jump up and get the bottle, because it was just so precious.

I Thessalonians 5:18 says, "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." Giving thanks in EVERY THING is hard! I love the fact that God understands that it is often a sacrifice to be thankful. I've come to learn, too, that God hears the thanksgiving of His children and is moved to act on their behalf- just as Beth wanted to get her daughter's bottle.

When we choose to thank God in spite of our circumstances, we not only tender His heart toward us, but we set in motion a change in our own hearts. Gratefulness, like patience and love, is not a feeling. It is a choice. When we make the choice to be thankful, our feelings often choose to follow.

This week, we are all reminded to show an attitude of gratefulness that should be a daily habit. It isn't a daily habit for me. Sometimes, I need to have a little help getting my attitude in line. So I wanted to share with you one of my favorite resources.

31 Days of Praise by Ruth Meyer is a great little resource to help jump start your day. There is a short reading for each day of the month, that helps the reader pray through passages of Scripture focusing on God, His character, and all He's done for us.

Happy Thanksgiving!