A Time to Feel Blessed this Thanksgiving

Sometimes feeling blessed at Thanksgiving is hard. It’s easy to tell people to be thankful and not realize they may be in the struggle of their lives. So many people I know have faced horrible situations and life-changing wounds this last year: divorces, death of children, suicides of loved ones, crimes, fractured relationships, etc. In each and every instance the pain and shock are deep, leaving victims and their loved ones to feel they are swimming in a black pit of despair. At some point we all face times dark times where thankfulness does not come easy. In fact, thankfulness becomes a losing battle. For some of you Thanksgiving is meaningless this year and the pain is too raw and harsh. So how does one feel thankful when life has dished out so much hardship?

This is where I have to turn to God and ask His help. That happened a lot this last year while going through a particularly rough struggle. When life is dark, I ask Him to help me see the things in my life to be grateful for, and He never fails to show me. God always helps me to see past the circumstances of life to the good that is there. And there is so much healing in feeling blessed which is why Thanksgiving means more and more to me each year. It is a time to share ourselves with others both to bless them and to be blessed ourselves. We share specially made food around a table and focus on the good things in life.

This year I am committing myself to sharing more of my time with others. And what better way than to open up our home on Thanksgiving and enjoying delicious food with others? We can do so much good in this world by sharing ourselves with other on a special day like Thanksgiving. Our struggles and pain can be blessings to others and help them which in turn is so healing for us. There is so much more peace in life when gratitude is a priority. Even better is the sense of purpose from counting blessings.

So, this Thanksgiving I wish you blessings and peace no matter where you are at in life.