It seems like just yesterday I was wondering how camp was going to get set up, and now it seems like camp is flying by. We are already in the middle of week 2 of 8 and there are no signs of it slowing down. I am once again rediscovering why summer is my favorite part of the year.
This week our theme is thankfulness. As I prepared the devotions for this week it really got me thinking. As I talked about in my last blog, all kinds of kids from all kinds of places are coming to Camp Trinity. It is easy for me to find things I am thankful for. I have a house that has electricity and running water. If it gets hot, I can turn on the AC. I have a full-time job with benefits. I have a car to get me wherever I need to go. And that doesn’t even scratch the surface for the things I am thankful for.
As I prepared the devotions, I really had to think about how to show kids that really don’t have much that there is so much to be thankful for. We had a kid come to camp today from a homeless shelter. When he got to camp, he told us about how his dad had been arrested last night. He’s also talked to us about how there are bullies at the shelter. How do I teach him that he still has a lot to be thankful for?
Today I had a conversation with one camper’s guardian and he told me about how every day he tried to pour into the kid’s life so that he wouldn’t get caught up with the gangs in his neighborhood. He told me about how the camper didn’t even know his dad. How do I convince him that he has a heavenly father to be thankful for?
When I was making the devotions I came across Ephesians 5:20, which says, “giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” God reminded me to give thanks for everything. No matter how small something may seem, we should give thanks for it. There are so many things in life we take for granted. When is the last time we thanked God for the computer (or possibly smartphone) that we are using to view this blog? “Giving thanks always and for everything” is something we often overlook. I am extremely guilty about complaining about things I should be thankful for. I complain about my computer running slow. I complain about coworkers (and don’t act like you don’t too haha). I complain about meetings I have to go to at work. And there are plenty other things to be added to that list. I really should be thankful for these things. I should be thankful I have a working computer, thankful I have a job with people there to support me.
I believe God tells us to give thanks for everything always for a reason. When we take all the little things in life for granted, we begin to take God for granted. I don’t think we can truly and fully be thankful for what God does for us without giving thanks for those things. Giving thanks for all things really opens our eyes to what God is doing in our life.
So I think I’ll start with teaching them to be thankful for the little things. Hopefully from there it can translate to how we can be thankful Jesus Christ died for our sins and really loves us. When we start to give thanks for all the little things in our lives, we really start to see how God is taking care of us. When we give thanks always it helps us to be thankful for God and all the things He does. I challenge you to make a list of all the things you are thankful for, and if you do I’ll bet you will find two things to be true. 1. You can’t finish the list. 2. You will be amazed at all God is doing for you.
until next time…
Comment Question: What is something you take for granted?