Mathematical Gratitude

Recently I have found myself humming, sometimes singing, an old chorus that goes like this:

Count your blessings name them one by one

Count your blessings see what God has done

Count your blessings, name them one by one,

And it will surprise you what the Lord has done

At the oddest moments these words pop into my mind. It's okay when I'm at home or with my Christian friends but not advisable when I'm working at the library! I got to wondering why this chorus was on my heart and mind so much and I came up with some ideas...

• I HAVE A LOT TO BE THANKFUL FOR! I am blessed with a husband who loves God, me and our children, four beautiful children who are doing well in life, a great extended family, fabulous friends, good work situations and so much more!

Years ago we attended a service at an African Episcopal Methodist Church in Pennsylvania. One of the things I remember vividly was how they took time to thank God at the start of the service. Several people began their 'thank-fession' with the statement "I thank God He woke me up this morning". A simple but powerful fact. Each day I am alive I have the opportunity to positively impact the world around me - do I?

Recently I heard Carol Burnett speaking about her daughter, Carrie, who died of cancer some years ago. She said that due to the nature of her illness, Carrie spent the last number of weeks of her life in the hospital. One day a nurse stopped Carol and told her that she could not get over how positive, upbeat and cheerful Carrie was even though she knew she was dying. It puzzled her so much that she asked Carrie how she managed to be that way. Carrie's response? "Every morning when I wake up I determine that I'm going to love my life today." That has really impacted me. If I take time to focus on the positive and love my life today, I will make a difference in my world.

I also read an article about a man in Toronto who, when going through a hard time, began a website on which he posts positive thoughts every day. This gentleman now has a huge following and his site gets thousands of hits. He has had feedback from people who have been encouraged by his focus on the things he has to be thankful for or which are good in life.

When I was a teenager if I made the mistake of complaining to my mother about something that I did not have but thought I needed, she would always remind me that I was better off than many other people. I always put that in the same category as the comment about eating up my supper because there were starving children in Africa. What did that have to do with me? As an adult, I understand what Mum was trying to help me see. There may be many people who have bigger, better, brighter stuff than me but there are many more who have less, much less than me. Even so, I have a LOT to be thankful for.

I have often been challenged by the Bible verse in Philippians 4:11 which says:

Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have.

I have learned that taking the time to be thankful for what I have goes a long way to making it possible to be content with what I have.

• When I don't take time to count my blessings, be thankful for all that is going right in my life, focus on the positive, I get discouraged, dissatisfied and delusional.

Delusional? Yes, delusional. When I ignore the blessings of my life, it's easy to fall into self pity and envy. Ever read the Berenstain Bears books? Remember the one where the kids got the "Gimme's"? (I love the green faced grimaces on the kids!) Sometimes I get to believing the ads that bombard me with the message that I deserve to have the luxuries they are promoting; it's my right to have the products they're hawking; if I don't get it now, I'm missing out. We live in a twisted world when fast food becomes a right, something I have to have and if I don't have it, then I have been ripped off.

Most days I can silence the pesky thoughts of being deprived of that which I deserve. It's really easy on the days when I have gone to the effort of counting my blessings but somewhat more difficult on the days when I have not.

When I simply cannot find my way out of my dissatisfaction and discouragement, I tend to consult my Bible because I know it is a source of Truth that will help to get me centred. I hang on to this Truth to help me fight my delusion.

God can bless you with everything you need, and you will always have more than enough to do all kinds of good things for others. 2 Corinthians 9:8

That's a mathematical equation that excites me! Here's to every blessing I need and the ability to do good things for others.