Many years ago, I was encouraged by a mentor of mine to think of some things I was thankful for that year that I could not have been thankful for the year prior. We can all rattle off a list of things we are grateful for, but the year she asked me to think of a new thing I was thankful for was a particularly hard year in my life. Baby #2 was much harder to conceive for us than baby #1 had been, and after many months of waiting to get pregnant again, that pregnancy ended in miscarriage. While all of that was going on I had some unexpected health problems that lingered for many months. That year I had to dig deep to come up with something new that I was thankful for, but after some reflection I was able to see some beautiful things that had happened amidst a year that felt like it was full of trials. Ever since that year it has been my practice to spend some time during the month of November reflecting on the things I am thankful for this year that I was not able to be thankful for last year. It might be because it had not happened yet or wasn’t there yet or the bigger picture was yet to be seen. Sometimes it’s new relationships or a growing family or a new job.
This year my list includes being thankful for some things that did not happen (that a year ago I thought really needed to happen), new friendships that have blessed me, and an extra child that I got to be a temporary mom to for a couple of months. I am thankful to have fallen even more in love with my husband as I watched him give so much of himself to a child that needed a male role model in his life. I am thankful for the way my children have adjusted to significant change and lovingly embraced a new “brother.” I am thankful for J and his smile and his pranks and for all the many ways God used him to give me a more compassionate and sensitive heart. I am thankful for a system, that while broken, is in place to help abused and neglected children. I am thankful for the calling that God placed on our hearts to become a foster family. I am thankful for a large number of people who showed a tremendous amount of love and support to both us and J. We could never do it without the body of Christ. I am thankful for the wonderful grace of Jesus which has gotten me through every day of the last 8 weeks.
Regardless of what is included on your list, I think it’s healthy for us to focus our eyes on the blessings in our lives and to allow our hearts to grow in gratitude. May your Thanksgiving holiday be filled with food and family, but most of all, a thankful heart.