Overflowing Blessings

I pray that you and yours are well and that your thoughts, like mine are turning to the Thanksgiving celebration next Thursday. Thanksgiving is one of the days when we as Americans begin to catch a glimpse of all the blessings in our lives and actually pause and take note of them.

For some of us who are in a time in our relationship with God where we sense His closer presence we give thanks. For those of us who are looking forward to spending some quality time with family, with children coming home, or with those we know and love, we give thanks for them. For those of us inspired to feed the hungry on this day, we can give thanks for blessings great and small that inspire us to make a difference and to remind everyone that they are loved. And for those who we are just looking forward to a meal that includes some of our favorite foods, we give thanks. Thankfulness is at the very heart of a life lived connected to God. It reminds us of the many ways that God gives life and touches us with His grace and presence. Even when life is not going all that well for us or for someone we love, thankfulness can strike a different tune in our hearts and theirs, opening the way for God to enter in.

And the blessings, when we stop and count them, are so numerous for every one of us, by God's grace, that it is almost embarrassing. I was at a function in Center City recently in which we all got to enjoy a kind of rubbery chicken dish and overcooked vegetable - hard to feed 500 people at one sitting. At one point, a server came by to refill water glasses and must have gotten a little distracted as they filled my glass to the brim and then overflowing across the table. The server was embarrassed, but it made me chuckle inside because the overflowing cup of water and the chagrined embarrassment at the table sort of came together in my mind as I reflected on the way God's blessings overflow in all of our lives, especially when we take time to notice them. God's love and God's gifts to every one of us overflow the heart when we acknowledge them and cherish these blessings for what they are.

So over the course of today and this next week, take some time to notice and to give thanks for blessings great and small in your life and I know that you will see that your life is overflowing with blessings and gifts, too many to number. It may be hard for some of us to see at first, but if you will look at your life, really look at your life and the life you have lived, the acknowledgement of God's overflowing blessings will come to your mind and your heart. You will know once again or for the first time the generosity of God in your life and give thanks.

Grace and Peace,
WFA