Thankfulness

Water and fallen leaves.

One is a life source, and the other is a dying object. The fallen leaves remind us that dying is sometimes beautiful. The combination of the two is striking.

This is the time where autumn is ending and winter is beginning. The days are getting shorter and colder. The days might be hard or getting more difficult, but God is here. Let Him into your suffering. He doesn’t often choose to erase it, but he helps you through it.

This year, I have so much to be thankful for. Probably the biggest things are my life and my health. I almost died last year so I’m thankful for every breath I take. I’m thankful I’m alive, but I wonder “why me?” I don’t know why I survived or why I was chosen to have these TBI repercussions, but I realize that life is not about me. My story points to a God that doesn’t always say no. Sometimes, he says yes—to our prayers, to our hopes and our desires.

We often focus on the “no’s”—the times when he doesn’t answer our prayers the way we desire. We hear, repeatedly, the trite phase “If God shuts a door, he opens a window”. We see broken dreams and unanswered prayers around every block. But, sometimes, God does choose to answer our prayers the way we imagine. Sometimes, God chooses to say “yes”. Let’s cling to those moments.

I’m thankful for the hardships because they allow me to cling closely to the One who creates my dreams.

So this season may be bittersweet, but you’re alive