Thanks For The Good Gifts I Never Thought Of Asking For

Thanks For The Good Gifts I Never Thought Of Asking For

Posted on by Michele Morin

I’ve been keeping a sentence journal since last spring, part spiritual discipline and part occupational therapy. I’m losing my handwriting thanks to Parkinson’s disease, and scrawling a coherent sentence in legible script every morning is one way of pushing back. During November, I’ll be expanding the practice by listing three things I’m thankful for.

Keeping a gratitude journal has become embedded in Christian culture to the point of being trite or even corny. Nonetheless, even my heightened awareness of the need to be thankful doesn’t always translate into actual thanksgiving to God, especially when it comes down to thanking God for the gifts I never thought of asking for.

This morning’s list included wood heat on a 25-degree morning and a deep mug of tea. Oxygen never once crossed my mind, but I wouldn’t be writing this post right now without it. The power to move my pen—well, that’s a different matter, and one that I would have taken for granted a few years ago, but now I’m achingly aware that my signature is changing and there’s an expiration date on that gift.

Even so, blood continues to course through my veins unhindered, I have the Book of Books in a language I can comprehend as my source of knowledge about God, and I can read effortlessly through prescription lenses, which are also a gift from God.

Did I ask for all these things?

God knows what we need, and God gives—whether we ask him or not, and even whether we love him or not! The common grace of oxygen, sunshine, and a breathtaking view of the Atlantic Ocean are available to one and all because God gives.

This Is the Will of God

I want to be obedient to the will of God, and in the past, I’ve been known to turn myself wrong-side-out and upside-down trying to discern the will of God for my life, but this is one area in which there’s no misunderstanding it:

Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

In these days leading up to Thanksgiving, will you join me in this practice of gratitude?
You can begin by sharing three things you’re thankful for in the comments below!

Holding You in the Light,

God knows what we need, and God gives—whether we ask him or not, and even whether we love him or not! The common grace of oxygen, sunshine, and a breathtaking view of the Atlantic Ocean are available to one and all because God gives.

Prepare for Thanksgiving with this New YouVersion Devotional!

I’ve got a new devotional plan ready for you on the YouVersion app just in time for Thanksgiving. Click HERE to start this five-day plan. I pray it will prepare your heart for this glorious season of gratitude. (There’s a good reason why Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.)

Have You Read the Latest Newsletter?

On the third Thursday of every month, I send a newsletter with biblical encouragement straight to my subscribers’ email inboxes. Frequently, I share free resources, and the newsletter is where all the news lands first.

CLICK HERE to read my most recent newsletter, where you’ll be given the opportunity to subscribe. My goal is to help you on the path of becoming a confident follower of God and a student of His Word.

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Associate, which means that whenever you purchase a book I’ve shared here through the link I provide, I’ll receive a very small commission. It doesn’t cost you more, and I only share books here that I can wholeheartedly recommend.

Photo by Jan Kahánek on Unsplash

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Published by Michele Morin

Michele Morin is a Bible teacher, writer, reader, and gardener committed to the truth that women can become confident Christ-followers and students of God's Word. She has been married to an unreasonably patient husband for thirty-plus years, and together they have four married sons and a growing fleet of adorable grandchildren. Michele loves hot tea and well-crafted sentences, poems that stop her in her tracks, and days at the ocean with the whole family. She laments biblical illiteracy and advocates for the prudent use of “little minutes.” She blogs at Living Our Days, and you can connect with her on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter.

31 thoughts on “Thanks For The Good Gifts I Never Thought Of Asking For”

  1. Well said. Thankful for family, food, provisions, being able to stand and walk, just a few. Thankful for being here to write, for writer friends (Michele – you’ve helped more than you can know!), and so much more. ~ Rosie

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  3. Michele, this is great. I like to take moments to tune into gifts I’ve taken for granted. As I age, I’m more aware of some of these than I was when I was young. I’m particularly enjoying how the morning light plays on certain items this time of year—living art.

    Liked by 1 person

  5. Michele, this post moved me to tears. I am grateful for my home which is comfortable and a comfort, my husband, my parents who are still living with us, and the blessing of reading my Bible each day. I will be praying for you and for the Lord to slow down the progression and to continue to give you strength. {{hugs}}

    Liked by 1 person

  6. It’s so very true that I often take those things that I think of as simple for granted… like breathing, my health, being alive etc. until something happens that reminds me of them (like a bad cold that makes it hard to breathe or health issues that crop up, etc.)

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I guess it’s human nature to take something (or someone) for granted until it is threatened or even lost to us. That’s one of the reasons I take Thanksgiving season so personally. We are such oblivious creatures!

      Liked by 1 person

  7. So thankful for the sight of flocks of shore birds (sea gulls mostly) on the beach this afternoon. We’ve been taking weekly walks on the beach on Topsail Island over the past year but today saw hundreds of birds whereas before it has always been just a few birds here and there. What an amazing experience! We were among just a handful of people there and as we or the others approached the birds they rose and flew out onto the water or wheeled around and landed further along the shoreline. Such a beautiful scene as the sun was setting over the sound behind us, backlighting the clouds. Praise be to our Creator God for His gift of nature!

    Liked by 2 people

  8. So true. So many things we just take for granted as in our everyday life. Thank you for reminding that the gifts are a gift that we just casually overlook in our human ways. Enjoyed reading. 🙂 Have a great week.

    Liked by 1 person

  10. May the Lord continue to give you grace and strength as you journey through Parkinson’s, Michele. Have you considered a voice to text software to assist you in getting your thoughts down on paper, especially in the future? It may be easier to “train” the software now, so it does what you need it to do in the future.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you for this suggestion. I have started using that capability on my phone for texting and recording in the Notes app things that occur to me and would be too complicated to try to capture with pen and paper. I’m reluctant to give in to the disease, so try to balance sinewy determination with realistic admission of a need for alternatives.
      Blessings to you!

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      1. I wasn’t thinking of it in regard to “giving in” to the disease, but rather as gathering tools – just as we went from the old typewriters to computers, we can “adapt to aging” with using speech to text, then cleaning up the text before publishing. I have read a few books on it, but I haven’t done it yet, but I’m considering it as a tool to make things easier as I age. May you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

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  11. I remember one time as a child marveling at the gift of eyesight. Mine is not as sharp and clear as it was then, but I am thankful for it!. Also for a kind, hard-working husband, the Word of God, being able to cool and heat my home at the touch of a button, good food readily available, family, books, music, and so much more.

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  12. I was only saying this to my hubby the other night Michele, how grateful I am for my sight & the country that we live in.

    As I had Cataracts in both eyes going blind, which needed new lenses in both (I had done a few years ago) & if it wasn’t for the National Healthcare system we have here in Australia, which gives all its citizens free health care there’s no way we would have been able to afford those ops at the time.

    So grateful for my sight.
    Our Australian healthcare system.
    And for our Lord who supplies all our needs.
    Blessings, Jennifer

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  13. I have always felt 1 Thessalonians 5:18 is the perfect answer to the question, “What is God’s will for my life?”

    I have so many many things to be thankful for but today I’m praising God for the ability to breathe, for the Word of God to study, and my family to love.

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  14. You are an example of perseverance, Michele, fighting against Parkinson’s as you are. I pray God slows its progress! / I’m one of those who keeps a daily gratitude journal, a habit I began in 2017 when gifted a lovely journal that needed a theme! I’ve found it a delightful, attitude-improving discipline. A few recent examples include: 1) Nov. 3–Able to sit on the deck one more time before winter chill keeps me indoors. 2) Nov. 6–Errands gave me the opportunity to enjoy the trees in all their autumn glory! 3) Nov. 13–I never tire of those mornings when sunshine streams in the back windows, flooding the kitchen and its sitting area.

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