According to the World's Standards, We Don't Have Much...What I am Thankful for....

Verse of the Week:

My lovingkindness is everlasting. Psalms 136

According to the World's Standards, We Don't Have Much...WHAT I AM THANKFUL FOR!

I have always been a simple person.  My wedding was small on a 1,500 dollar budget, with an already used wedding dress, and my old prom dressed sewed and made into a bridesmaid dress.  It wasn't my wedding that mattered,  I was thankful for the man waiting for me at the front of the church.  I was thankful for the life we were about to share, not just our wedding day.  Our wedding day was one day of our life together, I was thankful for the many days, weeks, months, and years we would have together.  I was thankful for his heart for Christ and his passion for the things of God.

When I became pregnant with Brayden, the simple part of me came out again.  Our baby room/space consisted of a nice used crib, Brian's old chest of drawers from college, and a few homemade pictures and frames made lovingly by me. We didn't spend 6,000 dollars on our baby's nursery (the average cost today) or buy brand new furniture or paint our walls.  It wasn't the baby's room I was concerned about.  I was thankful for a healthy baby boy.  I am thankful for the privilege God has given me to take care of Brayden. I am thankful for the opportunity to LOVE Brayden.  I am thankful for the sleepless nights, poopy diapers, teething days, and for every boo boo I get to fix.  I am thankful for our sweet boy's laughter and joy in the simple things in life.  I am thankful for the opportunity to learn more about how to trust God and trust him with Brayden.  I am thankful Brayden belongs to Him.

While someday I look forward to owning a nice house, I am content in our little home at the present moment.  While we do not have the newest furniture, updated technology, or a lot of room, we are content.  But it is not the home that matters to me.  I am thankful for the laughter shared, tears shed, prayers said, memories shared, and Christ-like love shown within the walls of this home.  

We are now mostly a one income family.  While we are thankful that money helps meet our needs, it is not money that I am the most thankful for. I am happy to sacrifice our double income to be with our boy.  I am thankful for the opportunity to stay at home with our son and to see every stage  Brayden goes through; from discovering his hands and feet,  to sitting up, crawling, and now walking.  It has been a joy to watch our son grow up, and see that little boy that God made grow and transform. I delight in watching our baby grow up.

According to the worlds standards, we may not have much, but when I look at my life through God's eyes, I am richly blessed! I am thankful for the things of God, not the things of the world. Don't get me wrong, I am not saying having a 50,000 dollar wedding, a 5 bedroom house, and a large salary is wrong, but I do believe the motive behind it matters. Lets face it, we do live in a materialistic society, where it is important to have everything, but is that what truly matters?   Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.  For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. (1 John 2:15-17)   Possessions are nice, but I am thankful for God and his AMAZING LOVE because that is ultimately what lasts and matters the most. Jesus says in Mark 8:36, And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?  What matters the most, your 500,000 dollar home, or your eternal destination? If I lose everything in this world (which I will someday whether through death or something else) including all my possessions,  my family, and my friends, I am still thankful, because of the one who lives inside of me and loves me so much. I will never lose Him. I will be with Him forever.  My soul is secure because of Jesus.


Author, Steve McVey once wrote an amazing letter in his book, The Grace Walk Experience. Using verses he had underlined from the book of Psalms in the Bible.  He strung all of the verses together and wrote an amazing love letter from our Heavenly Father.  

This is what I am thankful for.....

I am thankful for the things of God, not the things of the world.  Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!