Refiner’s Fire . . .

Today is a good day to give thanks. Do you ever feel as though your life is on hold? Do you ever feel like you’re in transition from this point in your life to another somewhere in the future? Maybe you feel as though things have to get better than they are right now. A writer suggested those who feel imprisoned by circumstances or walls are the most hopeful. He further implied that those who have everything they want are less

hopeful because they aren’t looking forward to anything but, rather holding on to what they don’t want to lose.

When the future can’t get here fast enough and the circumstances don’t seem to offer much hope that tomorrow will be any different, make a list of things for which you are grateful. Sometimes the stagnation in our lives comes out of an ungrateful heart. How many individuals are responsible for our being where we are today? Remember back over the years of experiences, the help received, the support, instruction, patience, and so many other contributions for which to be grateful. When we can express that gratitude to others, it helps us express our gratitude to God. When gratitude becomes a ready presence in our lives, those feelings of stagnation begin to disappear.

If you are feeling low, stagnated, stuck, alone, isolated or a host of other symptoms, try sending a thank-you note to someone who means something to you; it may turn you around. A theologian and psychiatrist named Seward Hiltner, said that one of the true forms of worship is gratitude. It acknowledges the power someone else has over you. When you can truly acknowledgethat God has power over you, it is one of the first places

reverence begins. We are the creatures and God is the creator. He does have power over us and the more in touch with that reality we are, the more God can use us. How is he using you today? If you don’t feel used like you think you should be, try gratitude for His being in your life. It may also catch on with others. Who knows, we may all feel better to know the gratitude we have for one another.

Dr. Stanley Spence