Thoughts on thanks...

So, Thanksgiving is tomorrow. I have yet to make my dishes to contribute to the festivities...yes, the true procrastinator. As a sidenote, I am making a pumpkin cake with whiskey whipped cream that I found on thepioneerwoman.com and it looks fabulous...I will let you know how it turns out!

Anyway, I have been thinking a lot this week of what it means to be grateful...and how I'm really not so good at it.

I realize this about myself when something happens that I don't like, and I'm sure you can relate. You know, you're thankful for your health when all of a sudden you feel terrible and have the lovely stomach virus that seems to be hitting everyone's houses. Or you're thankful for financial provision when suddenly money is really tight. Or you're grateful for the days that your child is delightful when you have a day that she's not so delightful...the list continues...

One of my very best friends has been handed a tragedy in the last week. It makes my heart beat faster and my eyes tear up just to write about it. And I have been wrestling with how to be grateful for it. I'm not grateful for it. It makes me sad, and heavy hearted. And yet God has been so gracious to bring thoughts and verses to my mind all week that talk of his mercy, his goodness, "blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted," and mostly that he is close to the brokenhearted. So while He is always with us, I believe that He is especially close to my friends this week. I believe he sat with them and cried in the hospital room. I believe he sat at the foot of my friend's bed as she tried to sleep, despite her devastated heart. The mental images of Jesus' closeness make me cry all over again because it reveals to me His tenderness...and I am reminded that there will be a day when all things are made right.

So - what to be thankful for? The Lord's mercy, tenderness, compassion. His goodness, perfect love, and his nearness to us. Especially his nearness.