Being Thankful For the Grass On My Side!

Today Mary Helen will be sharing with you and encouraging you. I know you'll love her!

 

In my mother’s guest bathroom there is a cute little comical sign that hangs from a picture of an old timey outhouse. The sign reads “the grass is always greener on the other side.” I laugh everytime I read it, but I got to thinking about this concept and how it relates to this time of thanksgiving. 

A life of comparison and discontentment can fade our heart of thankfulness.

It’s easy to say “look at the car her husband just bought for her, their kids are so well behaved and always neatly dressed, and did you see the house they live in!” But when we live a life of comparison and envy toward others we have a hard time being thankful for all our many blessings. We create a world for ourselves that is too busy dwelling on what we don’t have and not what we do have.

In the same chapter of Philippians, Paul writes “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.” (Philippians 4:6) and “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.” (Phillipians 4:11) I love how he says that he has learned! Even a great man of God like Paul had lessons along the way he was taught by God and life.

 I’ve been there. I have had times in my life where discontentment and envy clouded my heart and made it hard to be thankful. In Philippians Paul goes on to remind of us of all the things we can find to bring us hope and joy, things we can think on (Philippians 4:8). I have literally put this verse into practice and believe me when I say IT WORKS!!!  

When we let go of a life of comparison we open our hearts to great joy.

I can remember those times where I paused and stopped myself from comparing. A great principle to go by is…Drop it, Never Dwell!!! I can tell you exactly how it felt to let go of that heart of envy and grab a hold of a heart of thanksgiving. What better time of the year for us to be extra thankful than now.

My grass may not be green, but it is grass!

Here’s your challenge. Find every little thing you can think of to be thankful for. Think “my husband held open the door for me today, my kids love learning about Jesus, I have a roof over my head, I didn’t burn the toast at breakfast for a change, my washing machine still works.” Think and dwell on all the blessings God gave you and don’t leave even the tiniest one out. Count each and every one!!! Watch as your heart is filled with joy and wonder toward a God who would love you so very much to give you all this and much more! 

Let’s pray...

Father, we come to You so humble. We know that we deserve nothing, but yet You continue to love and provide for us. We most gratefully praise You for the greatest gift of Your Son Jesus and salvation. Help us always remember to count our blessings and never give in to an enemy that would have us focus on envy, hate, discontentment, and greed. May our hearts turn to You and be filled with hope, love, joy, and peace. Let us be thankful to You each and every day of the year. Amen!

Happy Thanksgiving from my family to yours,

Mary Helen Daniels

Mary Helen Daniels lives in South Mississippi where she and her husband, Josh love on three beautiful kids, Hannah, Noah, and Sarah. Josh is the pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church, and most of their time is spent ministering with their church family to the surrounding community. She is a stay-at-home mama, and home-schools all three kids from ages 9 to 4. Her lifelong dream is to be a published author. She follows God's plan to grow her writing skills and reach other women by running a small blog www.amamasworkload.blogspot.com. Her greatest passion for writing is letting the world of Christian women know they are not alone; somewhere out there stands a wife, a mom, and a woman in the same shoes and a God who loves them dearly.