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//What I'm Thankful For This Year//

"But now, LORD, You are our Father. We are the clay, and You are our Potter. We are the work of Your hands" - Isaiah 64:8

What a year! Some years feel slow and some years feel fast, but for me, this year came and went! This is a bitter-sweet year for me. On one hand, I'm relieved this year went by so quickly. On the other, I'm not so sure I'm ready to let it go, just yet. One thing I do know for sure, is that whatever season we find ourselves in, both the highs and the lows, the ups and the downs, nothing lasts forever. Our moment spent on this earth is just temporary. When the times are tough, it's reminding ourselves of the scripture found in 2 Corinthians 4:17-18, "For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal," that brings us hope. There will be a time of our relief from our present pain, but when things are going good, we tend to forget that our time on earth is brief.

“ 'LORD, remind me how brief my time on earth will be. Remind me that my days are numbered— how fleeting my life is. You have made my

life no longer than the width of my hand. My entire lifetime is just a moment to you; at best, each of us is but a breath.' We are merely moving shadows, and all our busy rushing ends in nothing. We heap up wealth, not knowing who will spend it. And so, Lord, where do I put my hope?

My only hope is in you." - Psalm 39:4-7

We tend to think when things are going well, this is how it will always be. We also tend to think that as long as all our circumstances are going well, we will be happy. When our circumstances are not going well, then we are inclined in our human nature to be unhappy. But, this doesn't have to be so! Our life is too short to allow our circumstances to cause us to remain unhappy. Lets take a look at some of these promises found in the Bible. Both the ones that are hard to bare and the ones that bring us joy in our troubles.

Psalm 30:5 - "For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning."

John 16:33 - "I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”

James 1:2-4 - "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."

Philippians 4:4-7 - "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

It's a guarantee that we will face hardships in this life, but it is also a guarantee that when we put our hope in Jesus and not in everything else around us, we will have His peace. His peace and His joy is our strength (Nehemiah 8:10). Our strength will not be taken away from us,if we do not permit ourselves to give away our peace to every circumstance, trial, tribulation, or sorrow threatening to take away our joy (John 10:10).

You may be wondering, what does all this have to do with being thankful for on Thanksgiving? Thanksgiving is the time of year we reflect and look back on our year and all that has happened or what we wish would have happened. I had my fair share of trials this year, and probably more than I could count in years past. But, through it all, God has been faithful. The more impossible our situation or trials seem to us, they are no match for our God! It's in times like these that we are brought low. Humble knowing that God, our Heavenly Father, is our Potter and we are His clay. He is always refining us and making us more like Him in His image (Genesis 1:26). He never takes his eyes off of us, not for a moment. He is always near, He is always with us, and He will never forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).

So, what am I most thankful for this year? The Goodness of God.

Need some encouragement in your life? Check out my confessions book that I wrote for women to strengthen, uplift, and encourage your faith walk! You can find my e-book, "A Collection of Confessions - For The Woman of Faith", on lulu.com or by clicking here.

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