Thank you, Lord, for the family that surrounds us. Thank you for the children running in circles around the den, the siblings laughing in the kitchen, and the parents resting on the couch.

Thank you for showering us with more blessings than we deserve and that, at any given moment, outweigh our sorrows.

Thank you for holding our hands, catching our tears, and promising that you will never leave.

Thank you for the Christian family you’ve given each of us. Those brothers and sisters in Christ who are fighting their own battles but still manage to come together to glorify you. Thank you for their encouragement and may we go hand in hand in this walk.

Thank you for those who desire your truth, search your Scriptures, and know that following you is so much more than warming a pew or darkening a door on Sunday mornings.

Thank you for the babies who cry out during the service and the parents who wrestle them. Please let them cherish these moments for they are fleeting.

Thank you for the children and teens. Bless each of them and give them strength. Only you, Lord, know the trials they face.

Thank you for those who aren’t afraid to proclaim Jesus, whether they live down the street or across the globe.

Thank you for believing in us when we don’t believe in ourselves, holding us tightly when we feel so far away, and loving us beyond our greatest imagination.

Thank you for allowing us to see you in the eyes of a child, the love of a friend, or the kindness of a stranger.

Thank you for allowing us another year in this world. Yes, it has its frustrations and difficult moments, but it has its beauty and joy. Help us to be thankful in every season.

Help us, Lord, to be thankful for our problems. They could always be worse.

Help us to be thankful for the empty seat at the dinner table for it means that there was someone we had the opportunity to love and be loved by. Thank you for the memories and the tears for they have the power to make us stronger.

This day and every day, may our actions speak louder than our words and may they all display our gratefulness for your love, grace, and mercy.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

“Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (I Thessalonians 5:18)

Paula Harrington @ www.forthright.net