Giving Thanks

I want to start off by saying, I am not a very religious person. I do not attend church frequently, or even quote the bible often. My life circumstances have sometimes precluded me from being a regular churchgoer and even when I was able to go on a regular basis again, I just never did. I make no excuses. For people who do attend regularly; church can be very healing and it’s wonderful to be welcomed by a community with open arms, and to have people you can turn to in times of crisis. You come away feeling refreshed. For regular churchgoers – living in these times of Covid must be so difficult. Despite not being a frequent churchgoer, I have a deep belief in Jesus Christ. I grew up in the Christian faith and attended Catholic schools growing up. As an adult, I followed another religion for a time. But; I never felt any desire to get baptized in another faith. Not because I felt the religion I was baptized in, was the only and best religion. I simply did not feel the need to go that route. I respect every religion, regardless of what a person believes.

I wrote this today because I wanted to give praise and thanks to my maker. I think sometimes we feel we only have to pray for big things, whatever you perceive big to be. I believe we should give thanks as much as possible. Give thanks first thing after awakening….for another day of life, give thanks for minor things we sometimes can take for granted. When we pray, we should ask God, not just for something we want, but also thank him for our blessings. Above all, do not wait until you are at the edge of the precipice to reach out to God. Get in the habit of praying on a regular basis. A prayer does not have to be elaborate. It doesn’t have to be shared with anyone or said aloud. If you prefer, stick to the recited prayers. For me, I am comfortable speaking to God in my own words, like a conversation, respectfully and humbly. I said conversation, because the feeling of peace that prayer brings is my response. And, there are other responses to your prayers, that may take some time to be actualized. The beauty of praying is; you can do it anywhere. No one has to know you are praying. I sometimes speak to Jesus on my commute (in my head). Simple words can suffice. If uncertain about anything, ask God for guidance in your life. If I did not have faith, I don’t know how I could exist in this world. Someone, many years ago, once said to me ….”Jesus is your friend, even if everyone leaves you, he will always be there for you.” I never forgot that. So, today, I simply say….”thank you Jesus for always being there for me, Amen.“