Are we REALLY thankful enough?

Do you ever stop to think just how blessed you are? I make a point to thank my husband for being our provider, to thank people like the lady that cleans our church, the person at a checkout working on a holiday so I can enjoy a meal, and to be thankful to God for all that he does for me and my family. Do I always get it right, by no means, point is that I try and so do many of you.

However, some of us will complain about the least little thing and not even really realize how we sound. My house is roughly 1400 square feet, it has a carport, and a little over 1/2 an acre, in a rather decent subdivision. Now, I realize that to some 1400 square feet is small and to others it is big--matter of opinion and current circumstances I assume.

There are things in my home that need to be fixed or that I would like to upgrade. Sometimes I get frustrated because my yard is not nearly as clean and landscaped as I would like. Some days I want to take my used SUV and just dump it along the side of the road somewhere because I don't want my husband to have to pay another repair bill. Sometimes, like a few days ago when a rack in my closet broke, I just wanted to throw out all the clothes that fell on the floor and start over......then I come to reality and realize just how blessed I am.

Yesterday as I was cleaning our office I was watching Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. If you have ever watched the show then you know that obviously they will bring you to tears and once again they did not fail to bring out that emotion in me. As a matter of fact, "tears" is a mild word. I was literally sobbing as I watched the story of the family about to receive their makeover.

They were a family of 7 living in a 600 square foot house. Many, many things in their home were broken. Children were sleeping wherever they could. The parents could not shut their bedroom door because it was broken off the hinges. BUT the video they submitted was so moving that I could see exactly why Ty Pennington and his crew chose this family.

They were a family overflowing with love for each other as well as their community. The dad was a coach and the mom was going to school for her master's degree in education. They said that they felt like they were put on this earth to serve others. *me:bawling* Each night they sat, all 7 of them, around this table that had to be shoved into the corner. Their dresser drawers were broken, clothes stuffed into a closet, floor rotting--you get the picture.

Do you know what that did to me? To know that there are people right here in my community that must be living that way or those who don't even have a home! What right do I have to complain about the stuff piled up in my back yard or the weeds growing where I want a nice little flower bed??

Like that e-mail goes:
Thank God that I have a sink full of dishes...that means we had food to eat.
Thank God for that pile of laundry....we have clothes to wear.
Thank God for those little hand prints on the wall...my daughter is happy and healthy.
......and all the other daily nuisances that are really signs of the blessings God has given us.

Sitting there yesterday crying my eyes out, I asked God to please show me how to help others in need. That has always been a passion of mine, especially troubled teens. So join me and ask God to show you what you can do. I am sure he will answer and show us just what we can do to make a difference in someones life.

Blessed beyond measure,
Tara