Things…
This seems to be a topic I keep coming back to but I think it is so important. We take so many things for granted every day. We live as if life will always be the same. You never know when life can change forever. We need to be grateful to God each day for what we do have.
Beginning…
Many years ago when my husband and I got married we had our dreams. We started by buying the property. We could not afford much so we placed an old mobile home on the property and lived hauling water for 2 years. Our dream was to live in a mobile home for a small amount of time and then build a house.
As the years passed and the children were coming, we did not have the room we needed. We only had a single wide 2-bedroom mobile home and the one-bedroom we have always referred to as the postage stamp room.
I remember having two kids in a bunk bed in the postage stamp room. We had a baby in our room and a toddler bed in the living room under the overhanging counter from the kitchen.
Addition…
We finally built on an addition so we had more room. We designed it in such a way that we could pull away the mobile home and build our house. The design included an area for taking care of my parents when needed. This has been the master bedroom, office, music room, etc. But we are coming up to our 30th year of marriage and we do not foresee a house coming into the picture any time soon.
There have been many changes over the years. In 1995 we put a new kitchen in our old mobile home. Since my husband is a cabinetmaker and we have our own business it seemed logical.
I don’t even remember the year but we qualified for assistance in making the mobile home better insulated. They came and replaced all our mobile home windows to really nice windows. And they sealed up the bottom of the mobile home with more insulation. It made such a difference in the winter. One year we remodeled the bathroom, which made such a difference. We even had a solid surface countertop, leftovers from a cabinet job we did.
Then we remodeled the back bedroom furred out the walls a little and put in more insulation. I am not kidding when I say, when we pulled the paneling away there were areas that were just paneling space and outside metal, no insulation. This mobile home was built in the ’60s and they saved money on insulation, Lol! And another year we remodeled the postage stamp room and made it just a little smaller so it could get better insulation.
Difficulties!
I remember when we first moved the mobile home up to our 10 acres. We had no clue the amount of snow we would get. It was a mild winter and we actually moved it on the property in the winter. And into the snow belt non-the less.
We discovered very quickly the next year that mobile homes, especially old ones, do not hold up to the snow load. So needless to say our roof was damaged. Our ceiling started sagging with the water load and we would put holes in the ceiling so the water could drain out. It also did damage to the roof’s structure. So we had to build a roof over the top.
But then…
Even though we have had difficulties it has been a roof over us and kept us warm. It has not been our dream and we still dream of having a house someday but at least we have a place to call our own to live in. Too many times we are not grateful for what we have and we are always looking on the other side of the fence because we think it is greener.
But then a few weeks ago the reality really hit me how much I appreciate my home even though it isn’t my dream. We almost lost our house.
We were all gone except one of my sons. He was working in our cabinet shop and came into the house for something. He smelt electrical and was going around the house to see where it was coming from but he could not figure it out. As he was standing in the kitchen, suddenly flames started coming up from behind the gas range. Thankfully he was able to grab the extinguisher and put the fire out. But if he hadn’t been in the house it would have been gone.
Grateful
We tend to go through life taking everything for granted. The thought of gratefulness each day that we have a house to come home to doesn’t really cross our minds. We don’t think about the fact that we made it to and from work, school, shopping, etc., safely. It just seems that most of the time we take it all for granted.
A lot of us may even pray before we leave our home asking for safety but do we send up a prayer of thanksgiving when we arrive home safely. Maybe I am the only one that forgets to be grateful but I have a feeling that is not the case. We get so caught up in everyday life we take life for granted.
Christians
As Christians, we should always be grateful. We should understand the sovereignty of God and the life that He sustains us with every day. I think we often use Him as a puppet. We expect Him to provide and do in our lives what we expect and how we think our lives should go.
Then when things come along in life that is unexpected it is harder to keep our faith. But the reality is we need to be so close to God that when those things come it makes our faith in Him stronger. Because we trust Him so implicitly we can go on with joy in our hearts even in sorrow.
Jesus is our example! “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God” Hebrews 12:2.
Christ
I believe the Father’s presence surrounded Christ when He was here on earth and that nothing was allowed but that infinite love permitted for the blessing of the world. This was actually Christ’s source of strength. And it can be the same for us. When we are imbued with the Spirit of Christ we abide in Christ. So every blow that is aimed at us falls on our wonderful Savior, who surrounds us with His presence. Everything that comes to us comes from Christ. The most wonderful thing is that Christ is our defense. And even greater NOTHING can touch us except by our Lord and Savior’s permission. We have this wonderful promise that He has given us, “All things” that are permitted “work together for good to them that love God” Romans 8:28.
We can be so grateful for the promises that God has given us to cling to. And also for His Word that we have available to us at this time. We need to treasure it. We never know when we may not have the privilege of having the Word. But we can hide it in our hearts and minds so we will always have it with us, no one can take that away from us.
Dear Father,
Your love abounds and is beyond our comprehension. Thank You for Your unfailing love. You are always there for us for which I am grateful. Remind me each day, Lord, that without You sustaining my life and I would not be here. I need You to remind me that You care even when the sparrow falls. So how much more You care for me when I fail or have any difficulties.
Remind me of the lilies of the field and the birds of the air and how You take care of them and they don’t worry as I do. I can claim the promises You have given me that You will take care of me. You will give me a way of escape in time of temptation. In the time of crisis, You will work all things together for my good and the good of those around me. I am forgetful, Lord, so I am asking You to do whatever it takes to help me remember. Prompt me and guide me with Your presence. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer for not only myself but for each one of us.
In Jesus Name,
Amen
Don’t take life for granted! Be grateful each day! And give all your worries and trials to Him.
Love you all!
What evidence has God given you that He cares? It doesn’t matter how big or small I would love to hear your story.