POV: When You Suddenly Realize How Lucky You Actually Are
The first time I saw her, she was at the pool with her special needs daughter. She was full of contagious joy that radiated from her presence. Her cool, colorful hat read, “Aren’t we lucky!” in bubble letters. She was the image of what I wanted to be and the epitome of everything that I felt like I was not. She was, in a word, “grateful.” And before she had walked onto the pool deck with her infectious positive energy, I was, in a word, “grumbling” that day—thinking about how hard it was to keep an eye on all three of my feral children while I longed to relax and read a book.
People and circumstances have the ability to shift our perspectives dramatically. That is exactly what Emily did for me at the pool that day. She was the happiest mom I had ever met and considered herself beyond blessed, even with a highly dependent child who would depend on her for the rest of her life. “Aren’t we lucky!” Those words have been ringing in my head ever since I met Emily that sunny summer day, and I couldn’t be more grateful.
How to Make Your Mama Heart Actually Happy
The Apostle Paul shared the secret of being content in any and all situations, whether well fed or hungry, having plenty or in need… “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:13). We too can do all things through Christ’s strength. We can adopt joyful mindsets, attitudes of cheerfulness, and spirits of peace. We too can cultivate hearts of gratitude.
Christ’s power is magnificently illustrated in our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). Praise the Lord because I am so weak sometimes! His grace is big enough to meet our every need, no matter how minute the matter may seem. God cares. Let this be a cushion of comfort. Lean into Christ’s grace on days and in moments when gratitude seems like a faraway tropical island you will never explore. Jesus can take us there!
Gratitude is more than a list of thanksgivings. It stretches beyond counting our blessings (although these are great tools). A sincerely thankful heart is developed through consistency—consistently taking our variant emotions and negative thoughts and nailing them to the cross, putting on the mindset of Christ, walking in the Fruits of the Spirit, and wearing the full armor of God each day.
By taking every thought captive and making it obedient to Christ, his Word, and his Will, we sink our roots deeper into the soil of gratitude. By demolishing every pretension, every preconceived ill notion, every unhealthy thought, and every wrong motive, and focusing our minds on all that is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and worthy of praise (Phil. 4:8), we choke out the weeds of thanklessness.
Acknowledging the Giver is a heart-changing force. We must learn to harness its hydroelectric power so that we can unleash it in our homes and everywhere we go. With Christ’s Living Water inside of us, manifesting itself as contentment, peace, and unsinkable faith, we become a force to be reckoned with. Like a great body of water, let’s be the body of Christ, the church, Jesus’ hands and feet through thanksgiving lived out. Let’s grow in gratitude in the midst of the messy, mundane, and struggle-bus moments—starting with our children and in our homes. Because really and truly, after adding up all our blessings, the only thing left to say is, “Aren’t we lucky!”
Meet Alexandra Jensen
Alexandra Jensen is a Steering Team Leader for the MomCo. Organization in Tulsa. Alexandra is part of the COMPEL Writers’ Group through Proverbs 31 Ministries. She and her husband are active members at Battlecreek Church. Alexandra has a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education with a Creative Writing Minor and a Master’s of Science in Math and Science Education. She is a former teacher.
As a busy mom of three, Alexandra writes in the margins of life. She enjoys taking her children to playgrounds, the aquarium, the library, and Chick-fil-A. Alexandra loves going on dates with her husband, late-night book club meetings, MomCo. meetups, and quilting. Alexandra is a creator at heart, and writing for God’s glory lights a fire in her soul.
Where to find her . . .
Begin Within is a series to inspire a year-round lifestyle of gratitude that will impact not only your own life, but the lives of your neighbors as well. Gratitude is a theme we talk about often around here because it ties so closely into other missional living rhythms. Practicing gratitude reminds to keep our hearts soft and expectant and our eyes open. Therefore, the more we embrace gratitude, the easier it becomes to truly see our neighbors and where we can join what God is already doing in our neighborhoods.
If you would like to contribute to Begin Within, you can find the submission guidelines here.
twyla
Twyla Franz is a relentless believer in direction over pace, and a proponent of ripple-effect living. A blueberry tea drinker, sourdough bread baker, minimalist wanna-be, chalk painter, mom of three, and wife to her first and forever. She plays worship songs loud and on repeat, and numbers her thanks to remember gratitude is a before, not an after. As an introvert who now has a village of neighbors, she believes a meaningful life with the people right in front of you and God spilling into your relationships is possible.
