We take for granted the things that we should be giving thanks for. We should reflect upon our present blessings, of which every man has many, not on our past misfortunes, of which we all have some. Here's some thoughts derived from the writings of Walker Moore

As I get older, I realize there are things in my life I didn’t appreciate until it was too late. I didn’t appreciate the naps they used to make me take in kindergarten. I long for the day when someone says, “You can’t work anymore until you take a nap.” I guarantee you, I won’t argue.

I didn’t appreciate one-cent candy or milk that was delivered to our front door. In the “do-it-yourself” world we’ll never see either of. I didn’t appreciate those face-squishing hugs my mother used to give me. Now that she’s gone home to be with the Lord, I long for just one more. This time I would squish her right back.

I didn’t appreciate the days I danced barefoot in the rain with my mouth open wide trying to get a drink of raindrops. I didn’t appreciate the sacrifice my parents made for my brothers and me to keep us clothed, fed and happy. I didn’t appreciate mom letting us mess up the living room on a rainy day. I thought building a tent with a secret tunnel is what everyone did on those days.

I didn’t appreciate the marvels of planting a seed and watching it sprout into a full-grown plant. I didn’t appreciate the struggles we had to go through as a family. Because of yesterday’s struggles, we have strength for today.

I didn’t appreciate the times my sons came to me and asked those annoying, unanswerable questions. “What makes a duck quack?” “Why is the sky blue?” I had no idea they thought I was smart enough to answer all their questions. I didn’t appreciate the times our family had.

I didn’t appreciate those “primary” Sunday-School-teachers who went through so much trouble to collect toilet paper rolls so I could understand what a scroll was. I didn’t appreciate those clear nights when the stars danced with glee showing off their awesome Creator.

I didn’t appreciate our sons’ “refrigerator artwork” that made our house a home. I didn’t know to appreciate the muddy footprints my wife and I so often found making a path across our carpet as a representation of life. I didn’t appreciate the times my children fell asleep in daddy’s arms. I didn’t realize it was there they felt protected from all the elements of the world.

God, I have just one prayer for today. Open my eyes that I may be able to see and appreciate the things that you do each day.

 

The great blessings of mankind are within us and within our reach; but we shut our eyes, and like people in the dark, we fall foul upon the very thing we search for, without finding it. Seneca (7 B.C.)