Multitude Monday

One of the books that I have been reading off and on since the beginning of the year is Nancy Leigh DeMoss', "Choosing Gratitude."  I've posted on this before, but here are some excerpts that spoke to me:

"However, I've seen that if I am not ceaselessly vigilant about rejecting ingratitude and choosing gratitude, I all-too-easily get sucked into the undertow of life in a fallen world. I start focusing on what I don't have that I want, or what I want that I don't have.
 My life starts to feel hard, wearisome and overwhelming.

Over time, choosing gratitude means choosing joy. But that choice doesn't come without effort and intentionality. It's a choice that requires constantly renewing my mind with the truth of God's Word, setting my heart to savor God and His gifts, and disciplining my tongue to speak words that reflect His goodness and grace--until a grateful spirit becomes my reflexive response to all of life."

This weekend I was tired and grumpy. I had taken the girls to shop for spring clothes and they were pleasant and a joy, but with every hour I found my own mood dampening.
Why are all these people shopping today? Why do they not open more than one checkout?
Why is there never the size we are looking for?

That mood spilled into my arrival at home where my husband was watching the boys. Poor guy. My complaining and stinky attitude landed on him and he had to deal with my heart of ungratefulness. I have since then apologized and asked forgiveness, but I looked at how other little irritations in my life cause me to put on my ungrateful glasses. 

 Instead of all those stinky thoughts that multiplied as my hours of shopping passed, I should have focused on how grateful I am that I even have money to buy clothes for my children. Grateful we have a van that runs. Grateful that we were able to stop at Sonic on the way and treat ourselves with a cheery limeade (Diet Coke for me=) ). Grateful that my girls enjoy spending time with me.

But as Nancy stated, being grateful is a choice. And it is work and requires effort.  But God did not leave me without the tools. He gave me His Word, the Holy Spirit, friends, and  family to help clean up my ungrateful glasses and get a better view of His goodness and blessings, instead of just seeing irritations and bothersomes.

So, for today's Multitude Monday, I decided to take pictures of those irritations. I know this has been done before and may seem so saccharin, but for me it is a required exercise to consciously choose to look at things through grateful glasses.

191. Instead of frustration over putting this ball together for the billionth hundreth time, I choose to be grateful that I have a little one that still comes to me for help. This is an easy problem to fix, but one day the problems will be more complex and may have several choices and solutions. I choose to be grateful that my day is full of these quick fixes that instantly bring a smile to a five year old's face.

192.  Instead of a boy's messy table, I choose to see creativity and a working mind.  One day I will long for a table full of toys and boy's noises.


193. Instead of a pile of irritations, I choose to be grateful for the little feet that live in my house. The joy I have in watching those feet walk in His Word. And I choose to be grateful of the privilege of teaching those little feet to line their shoes up and create order.

194. Instead of the frustration of opening our all too small pantry and having packages and cans spilling out, I choose to be thankful that we have a pantry full and the means to buy food.

195. Instead of the sigh for an unmade bed, I choose to thank God that I do not have to go to bed alone. And I cheerfully make up the bed and silently pray that my loved one has a good day at work.

Please click below to join others as they link up their Multitude Mondays list.

Have a grateful day,