It Is Good to Be Thankful: Appreciation makes the world a better place…
Years ago—before moving pictures, visual effects, and technology that constantly shocks the senses—people seemed to appreciate their surroundings more. They realized that life itself is a miracle. The whole universe is a miracle. These are not chance happenings, but actual miracles. Perhaps the following classic authors and poets were on to something…
Ralph Waldo Emerson: “The invariable mark of wisdom is to see the miracle in the common.”
John Donne: “There is nothing that God hath established in a constant course of nature . . . but would seem a Miracle, and exercise our admiration, if it were done but once.” Donne was referring to things such as flowers blooming, the sun rising, the stars appearing in the sky, or a rainbow. Perhaps if we had seen that oak tree grow strong and tall from one little acorn in fast motion, before our very eyes, we might consider it a miracle.
Walt Whitman: “To me, every hour of the light and dark is a miracle…. Every cubic inch of space is a miracle. . .”
Sometimes we are so busy looking somewhere else for a miracle we can’t see the ones before our very eyes. In Mark 8:18 (NIV), Jesus told the disciples, “Do you have eyes but fail to see…?” The same might apply to us. That was certainly the case with those who were looking for Christ to come in biblical times. Since they were looking for a Messiah descending from heaven with a flaming sword of righteousness they did not recognize the Christ child in the manger as their Savior. They missed what was right before their eyes.
How much do we miss every day? Can we see God in everyday miracles? Miracles like…
- Finding your lost car keys without having to spend all day looking for them
- Losing your Visa card with absolutely no idea of where it might be when Target unexpectedly calls to say you left it there
- A note of appreciation
- The grocery line being short when you are in a hurry
- Singing your lungs out in the car because your favorite oldies song came on the radio
- Your son from college calls to say, “I just wanted to tell you how much I love you” and doesn’t even ask for money
- All the lights being green on your way to work
- Enjoying the shade of an oak tree or the vibrant colors in a flower garden
- A cold glass of ice water on a hot, hot day
- A healthy child being born
- Another day of life
I’m so thankful for everyday miracles. If we don’t recognize and appreciate the everyday miracles in our ordinary lives, it’s likely we won’t recognize the bigger ones when they come our way.
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“It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord...” ~ Psalms 92:1 (KJV)
