Why being thankful all year long is so important

Yesterday, we celebrated Thanksgiving.  It was an extremely special time for me.  I had the chance to see two uncles, whom I had not seen in many years.  I had the rare chance to go back in time and remember great memories shared with them and other members of my family.  We got the chance to see how we had changed over the years, it was amazing to see how time had changed us.  I was so thankful to have the opportunity to see them in person again...to hug them, hear their laughter, learn about the lives they are leading and to share about my life.

Thanksgiving is by far my favorite holiday, because it puts the idea of being thankful at the forefront of people's minds.  As a result, they are little bit nicer, are more focused on trying to enjoy other people, and is the beginning of the season of sharing.  At the end of the day, we find ourselves exhausted from all of the good food, fun, and laughter we enjoyed all day long.  This kind of exhaustion is the kind we should be experiencing every day.  But we get so caught up in other seemingly more important things and miss out on it. We should be on purpose about being thankful everyday, because gratitude is the start of the process for you to have anything you want!  Having a giving heart all year long is the second step!

Being thankful and giving, in fact, are explicit instructions for us from God.  1 Thessalonians 5:18 tells us, "In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."  And Proverbs 19:17 says, "He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the Lord; and that which he hath given will he pay unto him."  Now there you have it!  Being thanksgiving only helps you! It's benefits are unfailing and eternal.  Want proof?  Now is the perfect time to start following the steps and get it!  You don't have anything to lose by doing so.

It's never to late to get what you want

Over the years, I have received so much praise from people who love what I would call my "fighting spirit".  That doesn't mean that I am running around causing unnecessary and messy disturbances; it means that when I want something, I go after it very hard...and am usually successful in obtaining it.  Now don't get me wrong, I don't step on toes, or do unethical things to get my way.  I just make a plan and follow it.  I also use my skills to access and examine my plans, and if something goes wrong, I don't abort the mission, I just change the course so that I improve my chances of completing the mission.

It saddens me that there are so many people running around with dreams and ambitions in their hearts, but they feel that it is too late to accomplish them.  I am here to tell you that it's never too late to get what you want.  We all have that "fighting spirit" somewhere inside of us.  We may have buried it underneath all of the obligations and other responsibilities we have, but it's in there.  We just need to search ourselves and dig it out from under all of the other stuff that stagnates us.  We can do this through meditation, prayer, and practically any other method that we find which will help us to put ourselves back into the action!  In order to realize those dreams that you truly have in your heart, you must be PRESENT and CONSCIOUS of where you are and where you need to go!  And for those who say, "I've got this to do now, I will focus on my dream later", I've got news for you, there will always be something!  That is the way life is.  We all have choices, we can choose to live our dreams NOW and follow our hearts and the holy spirit, or we can choose do to it LATER and hope that later will come!  I know I don't want to take that chance, do you?

The Beauty of Change

It seems that the older we get, the more resistant to change we become.  When we are children, we adapt more easily to it because we are almost always focused on the positive things that can come about as a result of change.  As we grow older, our experiences make us more cautious, and less likely to embrace change.  While change is a scary thing for many, it can be a beautiful thing.  In fact, change is inevitable in nature, and we are in awe of its beauty (most of the time)!

In fact, change must occur in the world's ecological system to renew it.  Fall comes in late September each year, and turns the leaves red, yellow, orange, and brown.  Those leaves eventually fall to the earth, leaving many tree branches barren of their typical beauty, and will even make the most manicured yards look amazingly different during this time.  This change carries on through winter and then into spring, where we see the budding of green leaves on those same trees, which make their way to the surface to restore them to their previous glory.  Life is much more evident in nature during the summer, as we see more wildlife come out from hibernation and scamper about as if they are reveling in the change of the landscape. 

Change is important to life in order to live it to its fullest.  We will make mistakes, some of them can bring about major setbacks.  But by pushing forward to help bring about change that is good, will always be successful, if people band together for that good.  Life without change would be dull and not worth living....so don't be afraid of it.  Embrace it!