Project Thankful - Day 3

Today is Day 3 of Project Thankful and I want to start off by thanking you for joining me on this journey. To be totally honest with you, this whole Project Thankful thing is an exercise in humility for me. I cannot say that it is “me” who is driving this whole exercise in stopping and thinking about what I am grateful for each day. God is really the one who is behind this whole thing… He needed me to see how wrapped up in “stuff” & “what things look like” I can get… He needed me to be humbled & for me to see that every “every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” (James 1:17) So thanks for starting this journey with me… :) I hope that you are seeing God at work in your own life.

So, today, I am thankful for humility. When I was growing up both of my parents did a great job of instilling the value of “thinking of others” and selflessness. My sisters and I were raised with the routine practice of caring for the “least of these.” For that I am truly grateful.

However today, I am grateful for the fact that God is asking me to now act upon what I was taught, and what I practiced growing up and in the past. Through Project Thankful God is calling me to action. I basically feel like I have been told: “Enough just thinking outside and beyond yourself, now DO something with that gratefulness & humility!” A favorite professor of mine used to always talk about “fleshing out Jesus.” Well, I guess it’s time to get my “fleshing out” on!

And Project Thankful is NOT so I may get the recognition or glory of being some “super thoughtful” person. I don’t want that! But rather my desire for this whole journey is for God to get the glory, for people to recognize His loving hand in their lives, and most of all, for people to experience Him through me… by reading this blog series, chatting over a cup of coffee (or a glass of wine for that matter!) , or by serving alongside me in whatever opportunities God presents to us.

I recently heard an excellent message on the sin of “Pride.” The person who gave the message used C.S. Lewis’s definition of humility & the definition totally blew me away. Here it is: “Humility is not thinking less of yourself. Rather, it is thinking of yourself less.” (C.S. Lewis)

Wow! Chew on that one for a little bit… Humility isn’t putting yourself down or saying you can do life without God or being a “doormat…” instead it is just recognizing what God has given you, saying thank you & then using those gifts to move/act/do/share outside yourself for His glory!

So, today I’m thankful for this 30 day long exercise in humility. I pray that it helps me to become more like Christ in my everyday endeavors… you know the changing diapers, schlepping kiddos, doing dishes endeavors… :) Ha! I had to add something “light” in there… But seriously, I am thankful mostly because I know that I am no different from anybody else in this world. I am sinful, selfish, & prideful. But in spite of all, that I have a Creator who loves me & who wants relationship with me & who wants me to help people experience His kingdom here on earth.

“For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” (1 Corinthians 4:7) Ouch! So today and forever for that matter, I need to be thankful & recognize that what I have is not because of what I’ve done, or who I am, or what I have accomplished. What I have is just a big series of gifts, from my Father in heaven who loves me & who loves ALL of His creation – and therefore I need to share, humbly, what my Father in heaven has given me.