by Linda Veath Cox



The earworm struck again. I couldn’t get the melody or the words out of my mind. It’s an old Irving Berlin song about counting your blessings instead of sheep so instead of worrying, you’ll fall asleep. Wherever did that “worm” come from? Must be the hint of Thanksgiving in the air. After all, it is just around the corner.


Hmmm. I wonder. If we took time to count our blessings every day during November, would we even know where to begin?


 

Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. ~ Psalm 68:19 KJV


God does indeed load us with benefits every day. From the beauty of His creation to the beauty of friendship. From the warmth of family to the warmth of a burning fireplace. From the peacefulness of hymns to the peacefulness of His Word. From the joy of helping others to the joy of our salvation in Jesus. Just to name a few.


But more than counting those blessings, we need to be giving thanks every day for them. Thanks to the Lord for He is the giver of all things. And thanks to the people He uses to bless us. Family and friends, clerks in our stores, first responders, past and present military personnel—all deserve our thanks. Now. Not later.


A few years ago in an email to a friend who had served in Special Forces in Vietnam in the late 60s, I thanked him for serving in our military. His response brought tears to my eyes. He said that was the first time anybody had thanked him for serving our country, for defending our freedom. It took almost forty-five years for him to hear those words.


Let’s not wait years to say thank you for the blessings we receive from the Lord through His gracious and merciful hand. Or to the people He uses to give these blessings to us. Why don’t we turn this November into a month of thanksgiving by daily giving thanks for blessings too numerous to count.


We all might sleep better in the process.



Linda Veath Cox is a regular contributor to DivineDetour. She recently retired after twenty-five years as a district office secretary for the State of Illinois. Her first loves are studying the Bible and reading, but she occasionally tries her hand at writing. Her work is published in All My Bad Habits I Learned from Grandpa (Thomas Nelson), The One-Year Life Verse Devotional (Tyndale), Life Lessons from Grandparents (Write Integrity), Love Is a Verb (a devotional from Bethany House), and Chicken Soup for the Soul’s I Can’t Believe My Dog Did That. She lives in a small town in the Midwest with the “Bone Mafia,” her two indoor/outdoor mutts.