I’m grateful today for Singapore noodles! Best noodle dish ever invented, and our neighborhood restaurant is the best Chinese restaurant anywhere (just saying)! I’m eating leftover Singapore noodles for lunch today, and I’m practicing GRATITUDE!!

WELL, HAPPY THANKSGIVING, EVERYONE!

Usually we visit my son and his family St. Louis, but this year the trip was cancelled because I’ve had a vicious 4 1/2 day migraine headache. Someone quipped, “Oh, so that kept you from flying?”  My response:”It basically keeps me from lifting my head off the pillow!” (And even the pillow hurts my head. No kidding.)

So this is an unusual THANKSGIVING holiday for me! But it’s been a blessing in disguise to be stuck at home with a headache! Yes, I’ve said it! While struggling with this headache over the last several days, God has been speaking to me, helping me to grow in grace and to learn from Him. He’s teaching me to CHOOSE GRATITUDE!! Regardless of my situation! He’s spoken to me very clearly to say that I am blessed beyond measure, and that it’s time to start counting my blessings and practicing GRATITUDE. So every day I’ve found multiple reasons to praise and thank Him, to express my gratitude ~ headache or no headache!

First I started to thank Him for my doctor, who WAS available yesterday! What a blessing to have a doctor who returns phone calls during a holiday week! Thank you, Lord!

Then, while reading my devotional the Lord spoke to my heart:

“Thankfulness takes the sting out of adversity.” Oh yes, Lord! Truth!

God says:

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and supplication, with THANKSGIVING, let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Phil. 4:6-7

Gratitude is the ideal antidote for suffering and adversity. Why is that the case? Because it completely neutralizes the damage, the suffering, the hurt. Your heart, mind, and spirit focus on the positives in your life, where God is blessing! Choosing to be grateful ~ though it seems irrational in the midst of the darkness and struggles ~ brings the Light of God’s Presence to that darkness and focuses your thoughts on Him. Your pain and sadness ~ whatever your circumstances may be ~ no longer captivate you! Just as Jesus won the final victory over sin and death with His death on the cross, so you are claiming victory in the here and now over the darkness of whatever ugly pain, sorrow, or sadness there may be. And isn’t the Lord Jesus Christ always with you in the midst of your adversity anyway? Why, that’s the greatest gift the world has ever known! Our primary focus should be on Him! We can constantly be grateful for His Light, His Presence in our lives ~ for His gift of salvation ~ as our first and number one GRATITUDE!

And then we can go on to look around us for the multitude of gifts that God showers on our daily lives! Like our homes, our country, our loved ones, our places of worship! Our Singapore noodles….

Yes, GRATITUDE is the key that unlocks the door to the true joy of knowing God’s peace in the midst of the storm. Or the headache. Or whatever the difficulty might be! Oh, dear friend, look to the Lord today! He wants to shower you with His love, His light, His peace! He’s waiting!