Men's Rosary

We just celebrated Thanksgiving. What a wonderful day!  We hear all sorts of stories of things we are thankful for.  We are reminded to be aware of all the good things we have been blessed with.  What I do not recall ever hearing at gatherings is being thankful for all the bad things in our life.  Why not?

What I posit is that the “bad things” help create the “good things.”  All we have, is pure gift from God.  We are blessed with things while on this earth, but we do not own them, as we are only here for a finite period.  It would appear to me that the closer we are to God, the more blessings we will realize.  I say realize because the gifts are here for all but when we are not aware of God the gifts may go unnoticed as well. 

The bad things that happen to us, the mistakes we make, the bad choices we make, all open the opportunity for God to work in our life.  Those who have been through something hard or upsetting will give thanks for being through it.  But what about the thanks for the very thing that brought us to God to help us get through it.

I believe that remembering the “bad things” in light of the “good things” will help us to be more thankful and aware of God’s goodness. It will also help us to better understand what others may be suffering and help us to be more compassionate toward them and share Christ’s mercy.  In our need God always supplies.  In our need we encounter God more and when we are helped through these things we are better able to share those graces with others. We should remember the encounter in the “good times” so as to remain in a place of gratitude for the gifts. As in all things, we should share our blessings with others. It is all gift, and we must celebrate them by sharing with others.  The greatest gift is God’s love and mercy. Let us imitate Christ in sharing that with those we meet.

“Give and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap.  For the measure you give will be the measure you get back.”  (Luke 6:38)

May Our Lady intercede for us for God’s grace and mercy, in all we may encounter, and the graciousness to share Christ with others so that they may also experience His love and mercy in their lives.