Thankful

Thankful

ˈθaŋkfʊl,-f(ə)l/

1. • expressing gratitude and relief.

     "an earnest and thankful prayer"

     synonyms:

     grateful, filled with gratitude, indebted, obliged, under an obligation,obligated, beholden

Sometimes all you need to hear is one message, one word that will minister to you in a way that you would have never imagined.

So without making a song and dance about this, the past few weeks, I have been feeling extremely sorry for myself. Crying until my eyes are sore and hot. Not because it is the worst thing that could ever happen in the world, but it is an extremely hurtful experience that I am going through and so are many others. But my mind and my thoughts are my own. I have authority over it and I can do with it whatever I wish to. I am choosing to be mindful of my thoughts so they do not completely overwhelm me whereby I lose touch of the reality of this life.

Rather than think about my particular challenge and what I am losing, I am re-channelling my mind to remind myself what in this life, I am thankful for.

I thought a list will help, so here goes:-

1. Firstly, I am thankful for the God that I serve. My father, my saviour, my Jesus. I am so unworthy, but He loves me still. He loves me anyway. He makes me feel like I am His favourite. Even in my darkest hours, He tells me He is right there by my side. To comfort me, to lead me, to direct me, to empower me, to strengthen me. There is nothing I cannot handle. I trust in Him so much. The giver of my life. His word gives me life. It gives me hope. His word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. He has told me that I am the light of this world. There is no challenge I will not overcome and return victorious. And His name alone shall be praised, exalted, glorified and magnified. Oh, I am so thankful for my heavenly father. In Him, I move, I live and I have my being.

2. I am thankful for my life. My life is worth living because Jesus Loves Me. I know who I am in Christ Jesus. As long as I have life, I have hope. I can do anything!

3. I am thankful for my children. My Lord has blessed me with three beautiful angels. My legacies. My mini-me's. I thank God for their lives individually as they are fearfully and wonderfully made in Christ's image. I see life through their eyes every day and its the most amazing feeling ever. They are the best things to have EVER happened to me. I love them more than words could ever express. And every day, I bless God for blessing me with such beautiful gifts.

4. I am thankful for my darling husband. My man, my King, my hero, my partner, my other half, my prayer partner, my lover, my best friend. He is my support system, my doctor and chef when I am sick, my spider killer, my baby daddy, my bodyguard... I could go on. He is all this wrapped up in one. Oh, I bless God for His life. He makes it his mission to keep me laughing EVERY DAY. For the 10 years that we have been together, I thank God. If I could go into a room full of husbands,  I will choose him over and over again. No body is perfect, but he is perfect for me, and I love him just the way he is. My husband loves, cares, appreciates, values and supports me. I am so happy to be sharing my life with him.

5. I am thankful for a sister like mine. I have the best sister in the world. She is my biggest fan, my backbone. I thank God for giving me someone to aspire to. She is my inspiration. She is my thought process. The tomatoes in my jollof rice. She is the ying to my yang! She has my back 247 365. I thank God for her life and who she is to me.

6. I am thankful for my nephew. Not only is he the most gorgeous little boy to ever walk the surface  of the earth, he is adorable and he loves me back! 

7. I thank God for my mother. I have a mother like no other! Being a mum now myself, I understand the struggles and challenges she faced raising us on her own. I am more appreciative of her decisions as a single parent. Ultimately, there is one thing that never changed - love. The love a mother has towards her child can never be measured. She is the one person that has consistently had our best interests at heart. As a woman, she is my inspiration also. I admire her tenacity, her determination, her hardwork. Her idea that there is NOTHING she cannot do. My mum will never accept no for an answer. She doesn't make excuses and doesn't expect any. Like my sister of course, my mummy is strong, beautiful, intelligent, funny and kind. I do have beautiful amazing female real-life role models to look up to.

8. I am thankful for my daddy. Omg, he can be so annoying sometimes but he's my daddy. There is one thing about my daddy that I can testify to even during my sleep. He is reliable. He is always there when you need him.

9. I am also thankful for my baby sisters,although they are not babies anymore. They are the naughtiest but I am looking forward to what the future has in store for them as they come into their own as women.

10. I am thankful for my parents-in-laws. They ALWAYS make me feel very loved and welcome. I pray God will keep them, sustain them and continue to strengthen them...forever. They are truly amazing.

11. I am thankful for my granddad. He is still alive and kicking and I pray that God will continue to keep him so he can see the children of my children. He is so nice and has been a constant and consistent male figure in my life. His support has been immeasurable and I wouldn't trade him for the world.

12. I am thankful for my man and woman of God. My mentors and life coaches. They direct me in such a way that is only led by God. I bless God for their lives and introducing me to their wonderful-ness. Their wisdom and their insight, their encouraging words that just lift you up during your trying moments. They breakdown the barriers of authority and show you love. I say this because they make themselves so accessible to you. They reiterate with their actions that you never need an appointment to see them. They are only one telephone call away and available anytime despite their hectic schedules. Yes, I say hectic because not only are they doing the work of God which is a full time job on its own, they also work full time and raise their children. Yet, they still take time out of their busy schedules to catch up with you and pray with you personally. As my spiritual mama and papa, I feel so blessed and inspired by them. I truly thank God for bringing them into my life. 

13. I am thankful for a particular sister from church. She exhibits the characteristics of Christ Jesus. She goes out of her way to be there for you in any and every way she can. There is nothing that is too difficult for her and she will do it all with the biggest smile on her face. I am thankful for her, her husband and for my friends and other relatives. Although not many, the few I do have, rubies cannot buy them. I choose quality over quantity. They are my reality-checkers. My life-balancers! I could name names, but they all know who they are to me, and I value them so much.

14. I thankful for the roof over my head. Yes! It may not be perfect but it is getting there and there is NO place like home!

15. I thankful for my many little and big achievements. My children will be proud.

16. I am thankful for the job I had. It was hard to find one, but I did, eventually and worked full time with three children. I am thankful because now, I am in the process of carving out a successful career for myself so I can enjoy the family work/life balance without missing out on precious time raising my children.

17. I am thankful for the dreams, hopes and aspirations that I still have and I am still hungry for. The holy scripture says the expectations of the righteous shall never be cut off!

Thank you all for reading.

Be Thankful and Keep Inspiring! xoxo