{"id":6889,"date":"2024-12-16T22:32:11","date_gmt":"2024-12-16T19:32:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/praisechapelkenya.org\/?p=6889"},"modified":"2024-12-19T14:49:12","modified_gmt":"2024-12-19T11:49:12","slug":"are-you-thankful","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/praisechapelkenya.org\/index.php\/2024\/12\/16\/are-you-thankful\/","title":{"rendered":"Are You Thankful?"},"content":{"rendered":"<style type=\"text\/css\"> \n#cmsmasters_row_69e1d4884b3a91_58108771 .cmsmasters_row_outer_parent { \n\tpadding-top: 0px; \n} \n\n#cmsmasters_row_69e1d4884b3a91_58108771 .cmsmasters_row_outer_parent { \n\tpadding-bottom: 50px; \n} \n\n<\/style><div id=\"cmsmasters_row_69e1d4884b3a91_58108771\" class=\"cmsmasters_row cmsmasters_color_scheme_default cmsmasters_row_top_default cmsmasters_row_bot_default cmsmasters_row_boxed\">\n<div class=\"cmsmasters_row_outer_parent\">\n<div class=\"cmsmasters_row_outer\">\n<div class=\"cmsmasters_row_inner\">\n<div class=\"cmsmasters_row_margin\">\n<div class=\"cmsmasters_column one_first\">\n<div class=\"cmsmasters_text\">\n<p><strong>The Power of Gratitude: Finding Thankfulness in Every Season<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>As we approach the end of the year, people often fall into two categories. There are those who look back and see God\u2019s faithfulness throughout the year. They are filled with gratitude, thankful that God has sustained and kept them. Then, there are those who look back with disappointment, focusing on unachieved goals and unmet expectations. For this group, the year may seem like a failure, and they feel as though there is little to be thankful for.<\/p>\n<p>If you find yourself in the latter group\u2014looking at what didn\u2019t go as planned\u2014I want to encourage you to shift your perspective and embrace gratitude.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"western\">The Story of Matthew Henry<\/h3>\n<p>There is a powerful story about Matthew Henry, a well-known Bible scholar. On one occasion, as he was traveling to preach, he was attacked by robbers who took all his money and belongings. It would have been understandable for him to be angry, disappointed, or even question God\u2019s protection.<\/p>\n<p>However, when he arrived at his destination, he chose to respond with gratitude. Reflecting on the incident, Matthew Henry said:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>\u201cI am thankful that I was the one robbed and not someone else.\u201d<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>\u201cI am thankful that they took my money, but not my life.\u201d<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>\u201cI am thankful that though they took all I had, it wasn\u2019t much compared to the value of my life.\u201d<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Here was a man doing God\u2019s work, yet he faced adversity. Instead of dwelling on what was lost, he chose to focus on what remained: his life and God\u2019s grace.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"western\">Shifting Your Perspective<\/h3>\n<p>When you look back on your year, you may see dreams that were unfulfilled or goals that remain out of reach. Perhaps things didn\u2019t go the way you hoped. But before you give in to disappointment, I encourage you to pause and look at your life.<\/p>\n<p>Consider this: you are still here. That alone is a miracle. You don\u2019t know how many dangers you have been shielded from, how many plans set against you were stopped, or how many traps were placed in your path that you never fell into. Yet, here you are\u2014alive and protected by God\u2019s hand.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"western\">The Power of Gratitude in Scripture<\/h3>\n<p>The Bible tells us in <em>1 Thessalonians 5:18<\/em>, <em>\u201cGive thanks in all circumstances; for this is God\u2019s will for you in Christ Jesus.\u201d<\/em> This verse doesn\u2019t say to be thankful <em>for<\/em> all circumstances but <em>in<\/em> all circumstances. Whether things have gone well or not, gratitude is a choice\u2014a posture of the heart.<\/p>\n<p>When you stand in front of the mirror, see the work of God. See the gift of life. You may not have everything you wanted, but you have something far greater: the breath in your lungs, the love of God, and the opportunity for tomorrow.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"western\">Be Thankful<\/h3>\n<p>As this year comes to a close, don\u2019t focus solely on what went wrong. Don\u2019t allow yourself to fall into the category of people who overlook the miracle of life. Instead, choose gratitude. Say <em>thank you<\/em> for the life you have been given and the unseen battles you\u2019ve already won.<\/p>\n<p>Remember:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>You came into this world with nothing, and you will leave with nothing.<\/li>\n<li>Every day you are alive is evidence of God\u2019s faithfulness.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>So, take a moment today to say <em>thank you<\/em> to God. Not because everything has been perfect, but because you are here. You have a reason to be grateful.<\/p>\n<p><strong>God bless you\u00a0 ~ <\/strong><strong>Bishop Tee Nalo<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6916,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[68],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6889","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/praisechapelkenya.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6889","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/praisechapelkenya.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/praisechapelkenya.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/praisechapelkenya.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/praisechapelkenya.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6889"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/praisechapelkenya.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6889\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6917,"href":"https:\/\/praisechapelkenya.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6889\/revisions\/6917"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/praisechapelkenya.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6916"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/praisechapelkenya.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6889"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/praisechapelkenya.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6889"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/praisechapelkenya.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6889"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}