Faithful Friday - Pause. And Be Thankful.

Tis' the season! 

Know how I know?  A quick glance at my ever-growing busy calendar!  I just gave it a once over and realized there is not a "free" weekend again for the rest of the year.  Seriously!?

Dinners, Dinners, and more Dinners. (unbuttoning pants now...) Parades.  Holiday functions.  Church activities.  Family get-togethers.  Annual Traditions. 
And So. Much. More.  With the hustle and bustle of the holidays, it is easy to get lost in the chaos and forget to pause in Thanksgiving and enJOY the moments.

"All our busy rushing ends in nothing."

- Psalm 39:6 NLT

That's one of the reasons I adore the new Facebook tradition of posting a thankful thought each day.  Not only do I enjoy posting, but it is so nice, especially after the political season, to see positivity in my news feed! 

Pausing to reflect on our blessings is truly the way we should start and end each day.  It is not happy people who are thankful - it is thankful people who are happy.  Such truth in that!

The first season in my life I remember pausing in thanksgiving was after our wreck.  Each night I would record thankful thoughts, prayers, scriptures, etc.  Such a blessed way to end each evening.  If I came across a difficult period, I would simply flip the book to the beginning and read over what was written. 

Prior to that I wonder how often I gave it thought.

Sure, I was thankful but did I pause in it?  Give humble thanks for what I have?  Praise God regularly for the good he'd given?

I'm sad to recall I did not.  Or maybe it just didn't mean as much until recent years.  After life turned upside down.  Tragedy has a way of putting things into perspective.

My hope for you is that tragedy isn't your wake-up call.  For some, there are no second chances.  Make the most of your life here and now so you can enjoy the hereafter.  I know I'm ever-thankful for every blessed moment God gives me.

What are you most thankful for this week?

Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord;
let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.

Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song.

For the Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods. - Psalm 95:1-3