Tomorrow’s the day.
Thanksgiving 2017.
‘Tis the season for saying out loud what you’re thankful for, counting your blessings, and making a gratitude list. (Though I hope we do that on a regular basis throughout the year!)
Sometimes it’s easy to feel thankful. The list of blessings seems almost endless.
But there could be other years when it’s hard. While we know deep down that we really do have so much to be thankful for, it’s hard to make the mental shift and focus on our blessings. Adopting that attitude of gratitude just seems like an enormous task because of our current situation.
We have an unlikely candidate to help us today. Let’s see what Habakkuk had to say when he thought about how difficult things might get in his life.
“Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.” ~Habakkuk 3:17-18
Wow. Habakkuk basically had nothing going for him. It sounds like not only is there nothing for today, but there’s little hope for the future. Not only is there no fruit in the vines, there aren’t even blossoms on the fig tree. The fields are bare and the stalls are empty.
Sometimes we’re in situations that feel like that. Maybe money’s tight, a child keeps getting sick, a job situation is stressful, or there’s a spiritual temptation we just can’t seem to get victory over. Maybe our attitude becomes “Woe is me.” It’s easy to get discouraged, to feel like life is against us and we’re not prospering as we should. It’s easy to get to that place, but let’s don’t stay there!
When everything was against Habakkuk, he didn’t lose his joy because he chose to focus on God. He made the decision to “rejoice in the Lord.” He knew that ultimately his salvation would come from God.
Is that our approach or not? Do we only find joy in good health, material possessions, and blessings we can see, or do we actually joy in HIM?
Let’s follow Habakkuk’s lead. Let’s rejoice in the Lord when times are good, and still rejoice in the Lord when times are bad. Right now, my circumstances are good. But sometime between now and next Thanksgiving, I can pretty much guarantee you I’ll have some struggles. So will I rejoice in the Lord then? I pray that I will.
What’s going on around us may not be good, but God always is. My prayer for all of us is that we won’t live in the despair of difficult circumstances, but that we’ll choose to find our joy in God and rejoice in the Lord!
I had to share these two songs that fit so appropriately with the theme of this post. [If you’re reading this in e-mail, you’ll need to click over to the site to view the videos.]
I’m so thankful for each one of you who read here, and trust that you’ll make many sweet memories with loved ones this season. Most of all, may you rejoice in the goodness of God this Thanksgiving!
Related posts:
Thanksgiving Week Video and a Favorite Praise Passage
7 Steps to Becoming a Wise Woman: Trust God
Who’s the Boss – Feelings or Truth?
Like you, things are going fairly well for me right now, so it’s easy to be thankful. So I appreciate the reminder that we always have a reason to rejoice, even when it doesn’t feel like it.
I am so thankful for you, too!!!
Channeling Habakkuk… 😉 ❤️
My days still feel empty and gray. Even though I know in my head I am blessed with a good husband, a home, good friends, my heart is still grieving and I can’t feel grateful. Thank you, Tracey, for this reminder that look for the blessings and be grateful for them, even when you don’t feel like it. Hope you had a blessed Thanksgiving.
Want you to know I was praying specifically for you yesterday (on Thanksgiving Day) and will continue to do so throughout this first holiday season without your mom.