Post-Thanksgiving Reflections

Good morning from Louisville, Kentucky!! I trust that yesterday proved to be a blessing to your life. Today will be a day where some people return to work as a part of their "normal" schedule. Some are visiting with friends or relatives in a different area of the country. Possibly others have chosen or will choose to chase the dreams of that "super deal" on that special gift for someone or maybe purchase that item for their personal use. And others may choose simply to relax and recuperate from from the festivities and work of yesterday. The purpose of this post is just to remind you to take a few moments and reflect on the blessings of yesterday. I also encourage you to choose to remember those special moments in which your heartstrings were pulled by an action or the words spoken from someone who crossed your path yesterday. You may be surprised what you will remember until you take the time to initiate the process of remembering. 

We enjoyed a wonderful day of celebration. My day began by reading a message of encouragement and thanks from a gentleman from Tennessee. I received a call from SC early in the morning and it also contained encouraging conversation. We were blessed to receive several emails, calls, and texts  from family members and friends which brought smiles, laughter and memories from either the past or the present. I truly believe that God sends these "messages" to each of us to remind us that our lives do make a difference and that we are an important part of the lives of others. We may not even realize the influence that we have been to people as we have traveled the road of life. During prayer we took a moment and remembered those families who faced their first Thanksgiving without their loved ones. We also remembered those families who were celebrating miracles this year and finally we remembered those who are facing their set of challenges at this present time. I mention all of this to remind us that God sees ALL OF THE NEEDS THAT EACH OF US HAVE AND WE ARE NEVER OUT OF HIS LINE OF SIGHT!!!

I want to share a couple tidbits from our Thanksgiving meal and celebration. First, let me say that my wife and our two daughter-in-laws did an awesome job preparing the food that God had provided for us. Second, let me say that our family did an awesome job eating the food that the ladies had prepared. Needless to say, but we enjoyed the meal and the fellowship.

We have a Thanksgiving tradition that we began as our first grandchild learned to talk. After the meal we sit around and share some of the blessings that each of us have identified in our lives this past year. We begin with the youngest child and move to the adults. It is always interesting to hear the words, thoughts, concepts and blessings that both the children and adults share. This year was no different and on several occasions my eyes were moved to tears as I heard our family express themselves to God as well as to their fellow family members. 

This year something different was added to this time of conversation.  I called my parents  in Alabama and put them on speaker phone. We wished them a Happy Thanksgiving and then I asked my parents to pray a prayer of blessing on our children and grandchildren. It was a very emotional time for all of us considering the fact that Dad is facing some health issues but the prayer that came from his and Mom's heart will stay with us for the remainder of our days. I could share many other words but I will close with this thought. I AM THANKFUL THAT I WAS TAUGHT THE POWER OF PRAYER AND THAT MY PARENTS MODEL THE IMPORTANCE OF PRAYER BEFORE THEIR FAMILY!!!

WHAT ARE YOU TEACHING AND MODELING TODAY?