I woke up this morning feeling grateful. I’m grateful for a wonderful husband, our family and home, and the blessing of God meeting our daily needs. However, I am not always grateful. It’s too easy to focus on lack or what I’m missing instead of abundance during this pandemic.
I miss my grandchildren, their laughter and squeals filling our home. I miss one-to-one conversations with my son and daughter and their significant others. I miss the special greetings at church. I especially miss visiting my almost 100-year-old mother in her assisted living home. We are all missing much during this pandemic. My heart goes out to so many who have lost friends and family members. Any daily lack I experience pales in comparison.
Ultimately, as we close this bleak year, survivors of this pandemic have a choice. We can focus on our lack, or on abundance. The simple grace of planting in the yard with the hope of spring flowers. The abundance of making gift bags for homeless individuals in our city. The joy of reading a story to my granddaughters over Skype or Zoom—these are ways I focus on abundance. Perhaps the world is recalibrating as we move into 2021. Perhaps God is offering us a “reset” to the simple joy of gratitude and grace. As this grueling year ends, I am learning what it means to be grateful for the little things.
· The opportunity to call a friend and wish her well.
· The provision of heat in my home
· Sipping a warm cup of coffee as I read my Bible
· God’s whisper of love during my prayer time.
· The joy of serving a friend as she recovers from surgery
· The fun of creating homemade gifts for Christmas…and so much more.
What if you chose gratitude for the little things? What if you decided that today, you would focus on abundance rather than lack in your life? We are all struggling, but we have a choice. We can focus on our lack—or we can focus on the Good News that God is still with us in this messy end of the year. We can be grateful for the daily abundance right in front of us.
What will you choose? Lack or Abundance?
