Attitude of gratitude...

Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

I'm sure most of my Facebook friends can tell when I'm doing "good" emotionally and when I'm not. I tend to post more positive statuses when I'm doing "good", and disappear when I am not.

I'm doing "good" right now.

I have had mountain after mountain of trials over the past year, and it is nice to get a reprieve from those. The funny thing is though, that my trials haven't disappeared, but my attitude of complaining has.

I woke this morning being thankful. As I watched slow flakes fall and glisten in the air, I saw such beauty and I thanked God for His creation.

As I think about what has changed lately in my life, I realize that nothing really has...except ME.

My trust in God has exceeded heights I never knew was possible. I have come to lean on the One who holds my world in His hands. I have come to trust that He really does "have a plan for my future...to prosper me and not to harm me...to give me hope and a future."

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

I used to think this verse meant to thank God for EVERYTHING, including the bad stuff. Although there is some truth to that, I suddenly realize I am to have an "attitude of thanksgiving/gratitude" as I present my requests to God.

For example: I do not have to be thankful that my checkbook is down to mere cents so close to Christmas, BUT I can be thankful knowing my Heavenly Father and perfect Provider has my finances covered. Some how, some way, He is still in control and I know He ALWAYS provides for my needs!

I do not have to be thankful for the trials my oldest child is going through, BUT I can rest in the fact that even though I am three hours away...God is beside Him. I can find peace in knowing that Jesus knocks on the door of his heart. I can have joy because I KNOW God also has my son's future in His hands.

Finances and my children...my two biggest sources of anxiety and fear...YET I can offer my praises to God because even though things look bleak in the natural, with what my eyes can see, I KNOW God is about to break through in the supernatural!

How do I know??? God has given me promises, though the Word of God, the Bible, about my finances AND my children's futures. He continues to point me to verses about prosperity and blessings financially. He also continues to give me verse upon verse about BOTH of my children serving the Lord, and about them BOTH having the peace of God.

So I can rest. I can be thankful. I can have peace.

And because of the daily time I spend with God, I can KNOW that I KNOW that I KNOW that He is FOR me, and not AGAINST me. I know I don't have to spend hours in anxious prayer time begging Him to take care of what I cannot. I just have to pray scripture back to God, scriptures/promises HE gave me, and KNOW that He is STILL God...and STILL in control of my future...

I encourage you to open your Bible to any of these verses listed, and really ask God what they mean, what they "look like", for your own life. Ask Him for promises you can stand upon during your tough seasons of life.

I pray that you will develop an attitude of gratitude in your life as you really realize that God is the Master Builder of your life, and He holds the blueprints of your life in His hands.

"Give thanks..."

"Shout for joy..."

"Sing a song..."

"Rejoice..."

Little words. Short phrases. Simplicity, right???

Well, it should be. In actuality, it really is, yet somehow we (er...um...I) make it harder than what it should be.

In my quiet time with Jesus, my heart has been impressed with the common theme of joy.

JOY - JOY - JOY

Say that word by itself, and it only tells me what I wish I had. It doesn't tell me what I need to do to have joy, nor does it tell me how to obtain it. It just reminds me of a deep desire of something I wish my soul possessed. Joy...

I'm a "fast food" kind of girl. I order it. I want it. And I would like it now-please-and-thank-you. I don't care for fancy food and I don't care how long it has simmered for. Just get it on my plate. If I smell it, then it should be time to eat it.

I don't like exercise, yet am in great need of some major weight loss! I'm still waiting for the miracle revival meeting where I get Holy Spirit "zapped" & all my weight is shed off at the altar, with everyone praising the Lord, while I dance around, falling out of my overly huge clothes from my instantaneous miracle weight loss.

"Are you ready to stop smoking?" my wonderful doctor asks, where I stubbornly reply, "Not unless you have an instant cure-of-a-pill where I will never crave another cigarette, will not gain weight, will not have mood swings, and can guarantee it will be an easy-peasy, happy journey to being a non-smoker."

So, imagine my response when God told me what the answer to having joy was!!!

Can ya guess??? Go ahead! Guess!

I gasped. Like the kind of "gasp" I did when He told me I probably would not have my instantaneous "Revival-miracle-weight-loss" experience.

"Give thanks Heaven! In ALL things! In ALL seasons! In ALL circumstances! When your checkbook is empty, give thanks that your needs are being met! When...give thanks!"

Well, I kinda' do that anyway. Sorta'. Um...sometimes. Well, only when it's not THAT bad! But I suppose I could give thanks more. Sure, no problem.

"SHOUT for joy Heaven! Give out a shout to me for all of the wonderful things you DO HAVE!"

I don't want to shout, but o-kay, if I have to, I suppose I can try.

"Sing a song sweet Heaven! When you sing a song of praise, it penetrates the darkness around you! Sing when you are sad. Sing when you are happy. Sing when you are worried. Sing when you are peaceful. Sing when you are depressed. Sing when you feel content. Sing. Sing. Sing! Especially when you don't feel like it!!!"

Hmmm...This list is sounding pretty familiar. I'm sure I have heard this before. Actually, many times before! I guess I am supposed to sing!!!

"Rejoice Heaven, rejoice! You are so busy looking at everything you do NOT have that you are failing to see all that you DO have. Cultivate an attitude of praise. It really does create joy. At first, it may seem odd and it may feel uncomfortable, but every time you CHOOSE to rejoice rather than despair, you are choosing to walk closer to joy..."

I don't know about you, but I really am tired of sitting on the sidelines and watching others experience joy while I still sit miserable. I often wonder if God lets us get to that place of getting "sick and tired of being sick and tired" so we will finally do what He's been asking us to do for forever!

What has God been asking you to do? Are you ready to do it? Are you finally ready to take the journey that He has placed in front of you over and over and over and over? I'm thankful God never gives up on me! I'm thankful that He continues to encourage me to walk forward on the individual journey that He's placed me on!

Rojoice over the brown strand!

And REJOICE before the LORD your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name—you, your sons and daughters, your menservants and maidservants, the Levites in your towns, and the aliens, the fatherless and the widows living among you. Deuteronomy 16:11

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sometimes, God whispers to get our attention. Sometimes, we simply feel the "look". Sometimes, He will use people to speak to us. And other times, He needs to SHOUT through life experiences and say, "HELLO! You need to focus! You have a job to do! I love you and I NEED you to get your priorities straight."

Well, for me, the latter came when my internet got disconnected. I was so involved and wrapped up in other stuff that my attention to the "real world" was no where to be found. God needed my focus and attention to be on my children, on my spiritual life, on my own flaws, and I was seriously not there!!!

Ah...I love God! Even when I ignore those small, gentle, and then bolder whispers, HE still takes the time to SHOUT. He seeks me out over and over again to get my attention. He spends heart energy preparing the way for me, and makes sure the distractions are gone so I will really hear Him. He is so gentle and loving and even when He SHOUTS, He still does it gently and lovingly. I am in awe today of the awesomeness of God.

Seriously, I PRAY THAT YOU..."may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." Ephesians 3:18-19

EVERY DETAIL! God knows! God plans! God uses! And when the time comes to fruition, He reminds us of every detail of our past that HE weaved together to form a beautiful tapesty called our lives. All of those brown strands (our mistakes from our past) are so ugly alone, but in the end, God makes them shimmer and stand out, adding the most gorgeous and slightest touch of detail amongst the many colors of beauty.

Look at a piece of material or a blanket and notice the gold strand weaved throughout it to give it that beautiful and completed look. Without that, it is a plain, pretty, but plain color. God takes the pretty, but plain part of our lives and weaves in those things we think that God could never ever use to make us beautiful. God takes our "brown" and turns it into "gold"...

And for that, today I rejoice...