Lessons In the Waiting: Count Your Blessings
When you think of Spring 2020 words like pandemic, quarantine, Covid 19 and toilet paper hoarding might come to mind. Yet through all the chaos and uncertainty there are many lessons to be learned in the waiting. This time is a gift from our loving God.
Why is it that we only remember to thank God for our health when we are unhealthy? Probably because it’s at that moment that we remember what a blessing good health is. In March my co-worker became very ill, very quickly. Within a few hours she went from feeling a little congested to having a high fever, coughing and trouble breathing.
She left work early and went home. The next day I started to feel the same but not to the extremes she had experienced. Over the next few days I felt a different kind of sickness than I have ever felt before. I slept the entire weekend only waking up when my husband checked on me to make sure I was still breathing.
My co-worker had contacted the hospital and explained her symptoms and received the reply that it sounded like the coronavirus, but they had no tests to confirm and suggested that she continue to stay home and self treat her condition.
On the first day that I could stay awake long enough to have a cup of coffee, I sat on my couch and thanked God for good health. I was remembering how nice it felt to wake up without pain or coughing and I prayed for forgiveness for taking my health for granted.
Eventually my co-worker and I both experienced complete healing from our illnesses and a lesson in gratitude. “Do you remember the ten lepers that Jesus healed? All ten were healed of leprosy, but only one of them was healed of a much worse ailment – ingratitude.” (Double Blessing – Mark Batterson)
In the waiting we have extra time on our hands to notice the many things around us that we daily take for granted. Blessings surround us everywhere and everyday if we choose to see them.
It’s springtime and the flowers are blooming, birds are singing and at times the sun is shining. Even the rain on the roof has a beautiful melody that can create a joyful heart. I had the opportunity to sit and watch the squirrels race around the pine tree in my back yard and wonder what type of game they must be playing. God created all of this for us!
I read the phrase, “Count your blessings not sheep,” today and felt that it was very fitting for the current world situation. Instead of rehearsing over and over in our minds the troubles we are experiencing we can instead choose to remember the blessings we have and will received from God.
A book I’m reading called Double Blessing suggested a Gratitude Challenge. The challenge is to write down three things you are grateful for every day for forty days. “Most of us are good at praising God for the big things, but we fail to praise God for the little things. And we are good at praising God after the fact, but not a second before.” (Mark Batterson)
We all have something in our lives to be thankful for. We just celebrated Easter which is a reminder of the greatest blessing every given, Jesus Christ. He loves us more than we can ever imagine; enough to die for us. And He is more than enough to be thankful for.
My Prayer
Father, thank you for Your healing in my body and in my heart. Please forgive my ingratitude and thank you for the reminder of the many wonderful blessings that are daily in my life. Open my heart and mind to see the many wonders that are in each day and to have a grateful heart. Thank you Lord! In Jesus’ name, amen.
Where does my help come from?
Ephesians 5:20
Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.