Above All, God

Posted by LisaV | 0 comments

As we shared a belated Thanksgiving dinner with our good friends this January, we talked about what we are grateful for. Some of the answers surprised us, but most of them pointed to being together as brothers and sisters in Christ. This Thanksgiving meal reminded me of our holiday with family this past November. Inspired by other families writing down what they are grateful for, our two boys and I wrote our first thankful lists the day before Thanksgiving.

I didn’t compose my list in any particular order, but simply recorded my thoughts as they came to me. For example, I am thankful that our older son cooks eggs for us each morning and our younger son grocery shops with me each week.

When the kids were done, I read their lists. On the top of his page, our younger son had written, “Above all, God” followed by a list of 65 items that included family, basketball, toys, and church. Our older son had also written “God” as the first item for which he was thankful, followed by himself, Mom, Dad, his brother, and several other people and things. I was gratified to take third place on our teenager’s list.

I, on the other hand, did not have God on my sheet until the tenth bullet point. It’s not that God isn’t tops on my list. I simply had other things on my mind first. The lesson I Iearned from our boys’ thankful lists is to remember to show gratitude to God “above all.” When we appreciate all that God has done for us and realize the favor He bestows on His children, then everything else will fall into place.

Crucified
Laid behind a stone
You lived to die
Rejected and alone
Like a rose
Trampled on the ground
You took the fall
And thought of me
Above all

(Michael W. Smith)

What are you grateful for this new year?

Lisa Van Dong has been teaching her two sons since 2004 and attempts to incorporate study, work, service, and play into their homeschooling days. She takes an eclectic approach to homeschooling and enjoys reading, writing, editing, and essential oils. Lisa blogs publicly at Pockets of Time and privately at Scooter and B.