I trust You~ I'm SO gratefuL

I complained about not having any shoes until I met a man with no feet. ~ Anonymous

When someone asks me how I'm doing, nine out of 10 times I'll say the same line~ although, to me, it's anything but a line.

"I'm blessed. Could be better, but could always be much worse!"

See, life is about perspective. God sees the beginning, middle & end. He sees the big picture where we tend to view life in snippets.

When our present cimcumstances are bad, adverse, difficult or just downright suck, it's easy to turn/view that snippet as the 'main attraction.'

How different would our lives be if we would view life in the scope of 'The big picture?'

What is the big picture?

I believe we aren't supposed to understand . . . we are ONLY to trust!!

Think about the people in your life, your inner circle, who you confide in the most. You do that because you TRUST them. Why is it not so with Jesus Christ? Our Savior, Best Friend & very Entity, who gives our life purpose!

Far too many times we say we trust the Lord, but when the first drop of rain, signaling a personal storm in our lives, comes our trust is in shambles or disappears altogether.

We must NOT be the ship/vessel so easily tossed about by the waves! We should, emphasis on should, trust THE ANCHOR (Jesus) no matter if there is not one ripple worth of waves, and all is calm on a not-a-cloud in the sky day, or if the waves are 50-feet on all sides, the thunder sounds like thousands of herds of buffalo, tsunami-like rain falling & lightning strikes abound.

We praise Him and thank Him when all is hunky-dory, we must do the same when the foundations of our life are shaken to the very core. When tragedy strikes!

True trust is taking someone's hand, in this case God's, and not asking where you're going, how long you will stay or if it will be a pleasant trip. . . asking nothing, knowing He is trustworthy & will NEVER take you anywhere, or allow you to go, without bringing you through it and without being right by your side, and in some cases carrying you!!

The Creator of the Universe by your side . . . wow, if that's not empowering, reassuring & encouraging, I don't know what is!

His grace will always be sufficient enough! (2 Cor. 12:9)

That is TRUE trust!

I know what it's like to SAY you trust the Lord, but when things go all to kabookie (when it hits the fan) . . . not trusting AT ALL, because you panic!

I have done that numerous times . . . too many to count.

But always remember Romans 8: 17 & 18 "And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with Him, that we may be also glorified together. For I reckon that the sufferings of his present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."

And Romans 5:3 "Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance."

Struggles, adversity & tragedies are never fun, but (and it's not comforting to type) they are necessary for growth! They are what draw us into a more intimate walk and depth with our Savior-- they CAN & will strengthen your relationship with Him!!

I realize trials are never easy, and that for some reason (only God knows why) certain people have to go through more than others.

Could it be certain people have a greater calling on their lives than others? Maybe some need to be put through a more extensive refining process, need to be prepared longer? I believe both are true!

While I don't know why he allows certain people to have harder lives than others, two verses provide insight~ John 13:7 & 1 Corinthians 13:12~ They give reason to believe in Heaven, we will have many, if not all, our questions answered.

"Jesus was talking to His disciples and He said, 'You don't know why I'm doing these things, but later you will." (John 13:7)

'For now we see through a glass darkly, but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as I am also known.' (1 Cor. 13:12)

The reason why trials often times crush us is because the devil causes us to doubt Romans 8:28 that simply, yet candidly, says ALL things work together for the good of those called according to His purpose!

We ask ourselves, and in some cases ask/cry out to Him, if you LOVE me so much (sarcastic tone) then why am I going through the this!?! And the devil smiles and whispers more doubt and brings more confusion into our minds and hearts until we are overwhelmed. . . yes with the circumstance, but more with the underlying questions, which are. . . is God faithful and how can this possibly work together for the good and for God's glory?!?

Once Satan has succeeded, is able, to get you more focused on questioning God's faithfulness versus praising Jesus and trusting Him no matter the circumstance, he has won the battle.

That's why in 1st Thessalonians 5:18 we are implored to "Give thanks in ALL circumstances for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

As I sat there eating a chicken sandwich from Chick-fil-A, it hit me like a ton of bricks. There are far GREATER people, in terms of purity, integrity, compassion and character, who will not get to eat one single morsel of food today.

Last night, in talking to two dear friends: Grayson (@Professor12) & Amy (@BigBlockChick), two believers, who don't take their blessings for granted & know what it's like to overcome adversity and the importance of relying on their faith, we have MUCH to be thankful for!

There are people who wish they could take one step for they can not talk.

Hear one word for they can not hear.

Speak one word for they can not speak.

Smell one scent for they can not smell.

Feel one thing for they do not have the sense of touch.

Maybe you walk into an empty house, I do, where as my Dad says, "You walk into empty & lonely ain't far behind."

But MANY have no home to come home to. No bed to lie their head.

Maybe you don't have the car you want, but you have a car.

Maybe you don't have the clothes you want, but at least you have clothes.

Maybe the food is 'nasty,' but at least you have food.

I'm guilty of this . . . sometimes I'm frustrated and angry when the fast food place messes up my order, but I TRY to quickly check myself through the reminder I am just blessed to be in the position to have food when many, not just in third-world countries but here in America, do not.

Try to thank the Lord for the blessings you DO have versus allowing the Devil to get you focused on what you DO NOT have!!

So many times in life, we focus on what we want instead of being thankful for what we have or instead of loving the ones, who want to be in our lives and who show they truly have our best interests at heart and love us, we have, we seek out & concern ourselves with why so & so (insert name) doesn't show us more attention, putting more futile effort into being the lone car on the two-way road we call friendship.

We shout out, Lord throw us 'a bone,' when we're figuratively surrounded by more bones than a cemetary! But without awareness & an attitude of gratitude these blessings are overlooked!

Here in the United States, we live in an instant gratification/spoiled country, where what we have is not enough and what we don't have, we want. . . and when we want it, we want it now!

We say, 'God bless America,' but like my Mom says, 'It's time for America to bless God!'

In the midst of all of it, take time, right now & often, to give thanks for what we DO HAVE. Maybe you aren't satisfied with it, but you've still been blessed with it! Some people don't have 'it.'

Let's all quit acting like damn spoiled entitled brats and give thanks~ not just on Thanksgiving~ let it be a way of life!

We have SO much and yet our level of gratitude is SO small!

And when we're faced with adversity, let us remember 1 Peter 1:7

"These trials will show that your faith is genuine. Ti is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold-- though your faith is far more precious than mere gold (or your crib/house, car, SUV, bank account, success, fame etc.). So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world."

Until that AWESOME day comes, let us be . . .

GRATEFUL!!!