30 Days of Thankfulness Day#2

And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.                                                                                                                                                                           
~Colossians 3:15



The well-know theologian Matthew Henry (1662 - 1714) was robbed on his way home one night and he wrote the following in his journal as to why he was thankful in that situation:

He wrote he was thankful because...

"1) This was the 1st time I had been robbed.

2) My money was taken but not my life!

3) The robber took all of my money - and it wasn't much.

4) I was the one being robbed, and not the one doing the robbing."


I am in the habit each morning when I get up, I jump out of my bed and raise my arms and say,
"Good Morning, Lord!!" 

I will add "Thank you, Lord!!" 
 as I remember all of His goodness.  The fact that He allowed me  to wake up another day is enough reason to give thanks. 

I have another reason to give thanks in particular.  I have had acute Rheumatoid Arthritis for the past 20 plus years.  I had to use a cane for 18 years and was told at the age of 32 that I'd be wheelchair bound by 40.  (I have a 32 year old son - so I've far surpassed that milestone ;-) )  As RA treatments became more and more advanced around the turn of century, I was able to function fairly normally, but mornings, especially during extreme seasonal changes as we have in Cleveland, were extremely painful.  Some days I literally could not get out of bed for the pain.

But, God went even further.  3 years ago I had a knee replacement and within a few months I was able to walk fairly normal and put away my cane!  Praise the Lord!  Thank you Jesus!!!

"Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise up and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins”—He said to the man who was paralyzed, 'I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.' Immediately he rose up before them, took up what he had been lying on, and departed to his own house, glorifying God. " ~Luke 5:23-25

Not a day goes by that I don't catch myself walking (sometimes even jogging) here and there, and I think to myself "how amazing is THAT!"

Yes, I tend to live a little more thankfully than most, but I could never thank the Lord enough for what He has done in my life.

 Lord, help me to live a life with such a sense of thankfulness, like that of Matthew Henry.