Count Your Blessings

In my family, we pride ourselves on “being real.” As a friend of my husband’s says, we are WYSIWYGs (pronounced wissywigs) – What You See Is What You Get. We’re going to be real with you. If you ask us how we are, we’re going to tell you, not just smile, say “fine” and groan inside at all the unspoken junk.

The problem with being a WYSIWYG, though, is that life doesn’t always go well. So, what is often shared is our junk and our yuck, which forces us and others to focus on our complaints. I don’t like to be a Negative Nancy. It’s not my main mode of operation. You wouldn’t know it, though, when asking how I am because what you hear is the reality of daily life junk.

Well, in this moment, I am tired of the junk. I am going to take a minute to smell the roses and comprise a list of my blessings. Out of our hearts will come our treasures. So it’s time for me to treasure the sweet things in my life.

1. I have a husband who loves me. In this day and age, not enough mommies can boast of this. I am so thankful to have my husband. Though our marriage has known its rocky moments, and God could not have put two more polar opposite personalities together, I am blessed to know that my husband always has his family’s best interest at heart.

2. My girls love me with their whole hearts. I have two amazing little girls. They are sweet, playful, creative and thoughtful. They have their moments, too. But I am thankful for every sweet instance when my five-year-old brings me a “present” of toy necklaces or notes that say “I love you” when she sees that I am upset. I love that my two-year-old climbs in my bed every morning to cuddle. I love their hugs and kisses, and I am so thankful for such loving girls.

3. I know where I stand in eternity. This truth alone is enough to make me pause in the midst of my insanity and know that all is well.

4. I have family and friends who love me. When I am lonely and feel isolated in a new city, I can remind myself that I have friends and family who are a phone call, text or email message away. Though geography separates us, our bonds of love have not gone away.

5. I live in a warm home. Every day that it is blustery and cold reminds me of how fortunate I am. It inspires me to pray for those that don’t have a roof over their heads or perhaps the means to pay for heat in their homes. It also causes me to stop and ask, what can I do to help those that don’t have what I have? I truly am very blessed.

6. We have a functioning car. We used to have two, but one is in the mechanic’s for repairs after a black ice-inspired fender bender. While I’d like to complain about the fact that the girls and I are on house arrest in a new town, I need to be thankful that we even have two cars and that, at this moment, at least one of them is functional.

7. I have taste buds that work. Now, this might seem like a strange one, but think about it. I can eat and enjoy it! Perhaps my ever-widening hips and ever-tightening jeans don’t benefit from this blessing, but I enjoyed that M&M cookie and cup of coffee with Italian Sweet Cream creamer this morning. (Yes, this morning!) Imagine your life without the chance to taste your food. My grandfather lost his sense of taste in his later years. Every morsel he put in his mouth was bland and flavorless; we had to force him to eat. Instead of food being a pleasure, it had become a chore. Yuck! Aren’t you glad that you still have taste buds and the chance to enjoy them?

8. I can hurt. I once watched an episode of Oprah that featured a young girl with no sense of touch. She constantly cut her feet on sharp objects. She chewed off one of her fingers and poked her own eye out. She could feel nothing. I have the complete blessing that my children and I can feel pain. Thank you, Lord, that I can get hurt!

Now, that the blessing-counting has begun, I feel that I could keep going! I truly am a woman who is blessed! How about you!? What are some of your greatest blessings?

Take a moment. Make a list. See how blessed you really are. I hope you are amazed at the quantity of your great treasures. Then, go ahead and share one or two of your blessings in the comments section below. Inspire others to see how blessed they are too!

Written By: Lisa Liebling