So much of our dissatisfaction with life is of our own making.
It revolves around our thinking. What we are focused on. We saw this attitude a number of years ago with Yvonne. It seemed to happen when she went
shopping. Whenever she would walk into the home decorating section of a department store she would find herself feeling dissatisfied with the way our home was? decorated. All she could focus on was all the things she did nothave. By the time she got home she would look around with a critical eye and then state with a critical mouth everything that was wrong with the house. But it did not stop with just the house. Soon she would turn her critical eye towards Bob and it would seem he could not do anything right.
This dissatisfaction seemed to permeate all of her thinking for a couple of days. It would then calm down until she went shopping again. Bob knew dealing with life this way was a dead end for Yvonne and our marriage, so he lovingly confronted her and suggested working on this together.
A verse we took to heart during this time is found in 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” It is saying that we need to have an attitude of thankfulness in everything because God is the supplier of everything we need in our life. What He gives us is enough. And that even in difficult circumstances, like a marriage or a family that is not headed where you want, He knows what you need and will provide it. We just need to thank and trust God.

We realized that having an attitude of thankfulness can become a way of life and it needs to be cultivated. We came up with a plan that has helped
change our thinking.

Cultivating Thankfulness

1. Create a thanksgiving list

To help change our focus we agreed to write down the myriad of ways God has blessed us. One of the first items on our list was the variety of
furnishings in our home. We found that nearly every piece of furniture had a story behind it as to how God provided it, particularly at times when we had
so little money. Once we had made the list we made it a point to frequently read over it and thank God for each item we had written down. Now it is
your turn to make your list.

2. Start your day with a prayer of thanksgiving

We start our day by reading something in the book of Psalms. Some of our favorites are: Psalm 107:1-2, Psalm 28:7, Psalm 139:14, Psalm 105:1-2,
and Psalm 100:4-5. Make a list of your own favorites, or in any book of the Bible. After reading, we then pray and thank God for another day He has
given us and we become more alert to all the blessings He will place before us. It is amazing how starting the day being thankful changes your
perspective on how you deal with everything you encounter that day.

3. End the day by counting your blessings

Keep a “Blessings Journal” and spend five minutes a day writing down how God blessed you that day. Could be the phone call you got from an old
friend, your child making the bus on time, or the sweet smell of the fruit tree blossoms. You get the idea.

4. Say thank you often

Let the people around you know how you appreciate them. It could be your mate, children, parents, co-workers, friends, neighbors. Call them, write
them, Email them and tell them. Make it an ongoing habit. It will make a big difference in their lives as well as yours. Also when God has
blessed you remember to thank him and do not forget to tell someone else what He has done.

When you start to feel like something in your life is not enough, look for things to be thankful for. It will change your focus and you will then
see how many blessings you really have.

And to be sure that you have Peace With God we would like to encourage you to visit _www.billygraham.org_ (http://www.billygraham.org/) and then
click on Spiritual Help followed by clicking on Steps To Peace With God. You may want to share this link with family and friends.