Some days I struggle with just being grateful. Ministry days can be tough, then add personal issues and, whew! Guest blogger Jennifer Landrith, senior pastor’s wife at Long Hollow Baptist Church in Hendersonville, TN, encourages us to start our mornings differently!
“Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name, make known among the nations what He has done. Sing to Him, sing praise to Him. Glory in His holy name, let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice. Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always. Psalm 105:1-4
If I could only start every day with this verse by remembering to begin my day with thankfulness and praise to God! Many times my day will start with, “Please help me with this or “give me_________”. My prayers and my day go much better when I focus on God and what He has done instead of on me so much. Don’t get me wrong, we can bring our needs to God but sometimes I feel my prayer time ends up being all about me and less about thanking Him and praising Him for what He is doing.
In ministry it can be the same way, we tend to get caught up in what we need at church or what the next thing to do on our list is and don’t just stop to be thankful. When we practice having a spirit of thankfulness instead of being so self focused, there are many benefits and here are a few:
1. We have a positive outlook.
2. We are aware of God in our daily life and how He is at work.
3. We don’t tend to be as critical or find ourselves wallowing in self -pity.
4. We are better able to handle those difficult situations or difficult people that may come our way when we start our day with a grateful attitude
If you are going through a tough time right now and find it hard to be thankful for where you are, then begin to thank God for the things He has done in your life in the past. He has blessed us with so much – life, beautiful leaves on the trees, the promotion, a spouse, an encouraging email, the church, the sunshine, a good night’s rest, friends, etc… The list is endless once you start. Try it today by thanking God as you go through this day for the little things and the big things that come your way. See if it doesn’t make a difference in your relationship with God and others.
“This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24
Jennifer is the wife of David, who serves as the senior pastor at Long Hollow Baptist, Hendersonville, Tennessee, where they have been for 15 years. They have three children, Rachel, Sam and Josh. Jennifer serves on the Women’s Leadership team and teaches Bible studies for women in her church. She is a Lifeway Ministry Multiplier, conference leader helping ministers’ wives and co-authored the Bible study for ministers’ wives, In Our Shoes: Real Life Issues for Ministers’ Wives. She has been a minister’s wife for over 20 years and has a passion for encouraging other wives in ministry as they serve.