~be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. this is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live.~
1 thessalonians 5:16-18
it isn't easy to be grateful all the time.
my default mode is set to "brood, worry, & complain".
switching out of that mode takes considerable effort.
i mention this because i've been working against my default a lot lately.
we're trying to sell our house back in detroit with a nasty economy,
and we're working our way out of an equally nasty financial situation.
so let's get thankful, eh?
well, if that's what you want, God, i'll give it my best shot.
the first step for me to get there was to realize that,
when faced with a problem,
i shook my puny fist at God & declared loudly,
"this sucks!"
and, of course, i went through the ick & guck & was better for it.
so i started to see a problem & think,
"this sucks, but not really because something cool will come from it."
note: this was not because i was becoming a better person;
it was totally because God was taking over.
left to myself, i would still be shaking my fist & complaining about my rotator cuff.
so He got me thinking about giving thanks.
and i started doing it each time i felt beat down.
"this sucks" ---> "...so thank You!"
it's getting easier with practice,
and i can tell God's claimed more parts of me as a result.
that in itself is something i can give thanks for...
amidst the suckiness...
which probably isn't that sucky after all.
