Can I touch your hair? For some, that phrase brings up a myriad of emotions. For some it’s an innocent question and for others it’s a careless one. I can honestly say I’ve been very intimately acquainted with that question.

In my third year of Bible college I got the opportunity to travel to Haiti and the Dominican Republic for six weeks. I got to meet new people, speak in churches and schools, feed the hungry living in “cardboard and tin” towns, and experience a glimpse of new cultures. In the Haitian church we visited, I was the only white girl some of the kids had ever seen and they became obsessed with touching my hair. At one point, I was literally surrounded by probably fifty children all crowding around to take a turn. Every day, I had to wash it because it became unbearably greasy from everyone running their hands through it. There wasn’t running water there, just cold water stored in large barrels. So I would scoop some water into a bucket, dunk my head in, and ready myself for the next day of head rubs.

I don’t know if that experience attributed to my extreme gratefulness for hot showers, but I feel like they are one of the most luxurious privileges of my existence. Years ago, and still in many countries today, taking a bath would involve a rigorous amount of work. But in my own little home, all I do is turn a lever and hot water comes pouring out. How amazing is that?! It’s like I’m a rich person in the 1800s!

This post is a simple post about thanksgiving. It’s about being grateful for the big things and the small, even when times are challenging.

The Bible mentions the importance of being thankful A LOT. So there must be something to it. No one likes an entitled person. They’re hard people to please and even harder to love. The irony is, entitled people are miserable because they are self-focused. The more you look out for “number one”, the more you get frustrated if you don’t get your way (like an adult baby!). But if you stop being self-focused, and become intentional about cultivating thankfulness, you don’t care if things don’t go exactly your way (hey, I’m learning this from experience). Being intentional about being thankful helps shift our focus so we’re not pouting over what we want, but praising for what we have. Practicing an attitude of thankfulness is a powerful spiritual tool that honors God, and puts our heart in a position to receive from him.

Colossians 3:15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts……. And be thankful

Psalm 100:4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving……

Ephesians 5:20 …. always giving thanks to God the Father for everything..

Jonah 2:9 But I, with shouts of grateful praise…

There are so many verses about thankfulness in the Bible, it’s like God is trying to tell us something (wink). A thankful heart is part of renewing our minds. It’s part of guarding our hearts. It’s part of walking in peace. Romans 1:21 talks about a whole group of people who refuse to walk in light, and who turn from God: For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened (NIV). Wow, that’s huge. Being thankful is one of the tools we can use to keep from becoming deceived by the enemy of our souls.

Sometimes when I wake up, I list five things I’m thankful for to get my mind and emotions started in the right direction. We get to choose what we focus on and magnify in our lives, even through challenges. Plus, being thankful gets our hearts in a place where we can receive from God:

Philippians 4:6-7 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

God knows that being thankful softens our hearts towards him. And he wants a soft heart because he wants true connection with those he has made and loves. Even through challenges and hard days, I try to stop the chaotic churning of my mind and look outside of the situation. “Today may have been hard but wow, the silhouette of that fir tree against the twilight is piercingly beautiful. And I have people that love me, and they are extraordinarily precious. Thank you, God. Today may have been hard, but I have a loving husband, a warm cozy home, and a dog that wags her tail when I just look at her. Thank you, God.” As we magnify the gifts God has placed in our lives, our hearts and focus shift to a place of peace.

Thank you By Maverick City is a great song to thank God to.

A Part of Renewing Your Mind:

• Count your blessings, even small ones.
• Be consistently thankful, every day.
• Even on hard days or when you are in a bad mood, stop and think about things to thank God for.