Be grateful for the things you have in this life. No matter what you may be going through or how difficult things may seem, there are always people out there who have it worse. There are many people in our world who have much less than we do. Some people don’t have a stable or healthy family environment. It makes you realize how blessed you are to have your family and friends to turn to, no matter what. They are there for you regardless of what may happen. Some children don’t have families to call their own and to be loved by. Some families have arguments every day and constantly fight, while others are suffering from that pain.

Some people don’t have a big circle of friends to turn to. But it makes you grateful and happy for the few loyal friends that you do have in your life. You don’t have to have a ton of friends and be popular to have fun in life or to be able to see the blessings in your life. The blessings of your friends in your life are what you make of them. You get to spend time with them and to be there for them just as they are there for you.

When I think of the many third world countries that so many people live in, it makes me so grateful that I live in the United States of America. Here we are all free to practice our own religion and spread our faith without fear of persecution or fear of death. We have running water and electricity.  We have food to eat. We all have the honor and privilege not to mention the responsibility to spread the word of God to others in the world. So many people don’t have as much as we have. We truly are blessed by God beyond measure with the things we have. He blesses us with all that we need to support our body and life.

There are so many people in the U.S. that suffer from homelessness and hunger. We can be there for them and to minister to them. We can offer them hope of the love of Jesus Christ and the good news that they can be saved by Him.

Stop for a few minutes every day and every night and even in the middle of the day and take in all the blessings you have. Consider how blessed you are and thank Him for all that He has given you and all that He has given the people in your life You have a family that loves you, a job, loyal friends, maybe a significant other that loves you. You have food on the table. You haven’t been hungry the way people in the third world countries have. Hopefully you never will. You have a house or an apartment that keeps you warm and dry in the winter and cool in the summer. You have transportation whether it is a bus, car, truck, train or van, in order to get to your job, and doctor’s appointments. You ae able to provide for your family because of the job that you have. The blessing you have when you really look at everything you have, compared to others who have nothing in this world, are immeasurable.  When you look at the way people in those countries seem to have more peace and more joy than what we have in our lives, have you ever stopped to ask yourself why that may be? Maybe it is because they have so little in their lives that they know how much they have to be grateful for. We should start following their example and not be as focused on the materialistic things of this world and instead be thankful for what we have every single day in our lives. If we truly had nothing, could we still find a reason to be happy, thankful and grateful the way those people are? We can learn a mighty lesson from them, to never take anything for granted. No matter how little they had or have, they always seem to have smiles on their faces. How much more should and can we be smiling and rejoicing in the blessings that God has given us?

Thank Him for the abilities God has given you. Use your abilities to serve Him, no matter what they may be. Be happy every day that God gave you those talents in order to be a light to other people and to shine happiness where they may feel sadness. You might just brighten someone’s day with just a simple smile.

Prayer: Lord help me to always be grateful for the things I have. Help me to minister to others about the blessings you give to us freely. Help me to minister to others about the Good News of your love. Thank you for all the blessings you have given me in my life. Thank you for your never-ending love and grace. Help me to realize that every good and perfect blessing comes from you. Amen.