Living a Thankful Life
“Sacrifice thank offerings to God,
fulfill your vows to the Most High, and call on me in the day of trouble; I
will deliver you, and you will honor me.” – Psalm 50:14-15
The news was awful. A shooting at a mall in a
Birmingham suburb. A 12-year-old girl was an innocent victim. She could have
been anyone’s daughter, anyone’s friend. Shock waves echoed.
But what was so amazing is how her mom wrote nothing
but positive on a Facebook post that was shared repeatedly. Rather those
focusing on the scary, the painful, the awful thing that happened to her
daughter, she used the post to thank those who helped her daughter and reached
out to her. I wonder how many of us would have done the same thing?
She thanked the strangers who rushed forward to tend
to her daughter’s wound. She thanked the nearby store clerk who snatched a new
shirt from the rack so it could be used to help stop the bleeding. She thanked
first responders, medical staff and all those who reached out. She saw the good
in an awful situation.
Her daughter should be fine. We are thankful for that.
It surely could have ended differently. And we’d be naïve to think there won’t
be trauma that lingers for her daughter, herself and the grandmother that was
there when it happened. We are all learning to be fearful, watchful, careful in
places that once felt so safe.
I don’t have any answers. I’m not diving into the gun
control debate. I own guns. I am trained and prepared to defend myself against
a threat. But, gosh, I wish we lived in a world where it wasn’t necessary. Don’t
you?
But I am thankful for good people who come forward in
the midst of chaos. Think about it. Shots were ringing out and yet people
rushed forward to help an injured child. No one would have blamed them if they’d
fled to safety. But they stayed to help. That’s good making a difference in the
midst of bad.
Today several people showed up at a friends’ house and
built a ramp. Her elderly parents certainly need it. And last week she fell and
broke one ankle and severely sprained the other. She needs it too. Good in the
midst of a horrible situation.
I have been the recipient of kindness and I have tried
to extend kindness to others. It doesn’t take much to bake an extra cake, drop
off a few magazines, or make a phone call. But it means the world to someone
else. It matters.
When we learn to be thankful first, it’s easy to
extend grace and kindness. We become aware of all that we have. We know that in
the midst of awful there is good and we are thankful for it. We cling to the
rock, our Savior, the One who never leaves us to face anything alone.
No matter what today or the days that come might
bring, be thankful. Find the good. Remember to thank God for His Presence. Don’t
ever take your blessings for granted. There’s always something to be thankful for
if you open your heart and look.
