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Thanksgiving

This is not going to be one of my normal posts. If that bothers you then please don't say you haven't been warned... ;-)

Actually, now that I think about it, I'm not sure if I've ever had a "normal" post.... LOL! I'm certainly not a "normal" dude, anyway.

I have been thinking a lot about what President Monson said in our last General Conference. He said that we need to foster an "attitude of gratitude." I was reminded strongly of the words of President Kimball spoken in a very similar setting. He said that we are very quick to express gratitude to those around us - the bank teller, the public servant, the guy who cuts the grass. But we are often remiss in our expressions of gratitude towards the great Source of all blessings. The scriptures are replete with the mandate to be grateful. Interestingly, with the proper attitude, even negative experiences can be things we are grateful for - once the experience is over, generally it is possible to identify growth that could not have come any other way. It is not reasonable to expect that one would be thankful while actually enduring said trial, but after it is over and the lessons have been learned, a careful examination of progression will demonstrate not only personal growth, but also (more importantly) the fact that we were not abandoned - in fact, we were carried - through the experience.

In teaching my children how to pray, I find that it becomes easy to skip past the "thankful" part of the prayer and move right on into the "please grant us" portion. This should not be! I have challenged my children (and my self) to try to remember at least five things in each prayer for which we are grateful. Certainly each prayer should include at least that number.... I have found to my delight that they are able not only to come up with the requisite five things, but often it brings to their remembrance many other things that the Lord has done. And more importantly, it helps us throughout our day look for blessings we've received, enhancing the feeling of humility, gratitude, and respect.

So today, ahead of Thanksgiving, I would like to express my gratitude for my five things:

1. I am grateful for a loving Heavenly Father. I am grateful to have a personal relationship with Him. I am grateful for the incredible and humbling Gift that is His Son. I am grateful for His mercy and love. I am grateful for His light and life. I am grateful for the unspeakable gift of the Holy Ghost. And I am grateful for the eternal plan of happiness, wherein I can return to live with Him forever. This is the fondest desire of my heart, surpassing any and all others, and filling my days with purpose and light and peace. The title of the blog is "Wandering with Purpose." This is the purpose.

2. I am grateful for opportunities to serve. Membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is an amazing opportunity to associate with people who are like-minded and -centered. It doesn't matter where you go in the world, you are a part of an immense organization of Saints who love you, need you, want you, and whom you can serve and be served by. These people become friends and family, closer and more intimate than any other associates one could ever hope for. The Gospel affords us these opportunities, and I am grateful for them.

3. And speaking of family... You know, you don't get to pick your family. There's only one that you get to pick - your spouse. Everyone else is assigned to you. I have been blessed beyond any capacity to understand or merit. My family - immediate and extended - are the finest people I know. They have been true and supportive through all of my life, even when I have been ugly or disappointing. It is awesome to consider that we are destined to be together as a family forever - that these associations we have now are just the beginning - and an imperfect one at that! One day we will look at each other as we really are: glorified, exalted beings who are radiant and wonderful. It is an intense honor and privilege to be associated with such amazing faithful people.

4. I am grateful to love and be loved. There is much that I would say about this, but I think that that statement will suffice. I will let you fill in the gaps with your own experience.

5. I am grateful for mundane comforts. When I embarked on my current vocation, it was not without some trepidation. I could never have guessed what the future would bring. I was offered a position with a private firm which would have potentially been more lucrative, but in which I would not have had opportunities to serve and lead in the way I would like. It was a hard decision, but it was the right one. So I turned down the job, which ended up being fortuitous (I knew the guy they hired in my place and he lasted about six weeks before the downturn in the economy caught up to him and he was let go). My life has taken me places that are surprising and wonderful (I'm in TEXAS, for crying out loud!!!) and in all of this I have felt the hand of the Lord guiding me and placing me where He wants me to be - for no one's benefit than my own. Our family has been blessed because of our willingness to follow the gentle promptings given from the Lord. So when I acknowledge my gratitude for the mundane comforts, I mean literally the comforts associated with a comfortable, stable financial condition, but I also acknowledge the great Source from which these and all other blessings flow.

OK - so there's the five. It's a little bit of a cheat - there were things in there that could have been broken out into several different things, I guess. But I hope that the point is not lost with all the excessive circumlocution...

Life is good. God is good. I am so very, very grateful.

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