Just Be Thankful

I am constantly impressed with our kids in the youth group. Each time I'm around them, I find more and more good things to be proud of them for. One thing happened at Bible study the other night that just had my heart overflowing with pride. 

Four of our middle schoolers were in the kitchen at "the house" making grape Kool-Aid. Britton, who just so happened to be the only boy in the bunch, was the one who was making the drink. Of course, as all women do, the other three girls were giving him specific instructions on how to make it just right. Keep in mind, I was sitting at the dining room table outside of the kitchen listening to all of this going on. As I heard them bickering back and forth, I couldn't help but laugh at the girls "bossing" him around and couldn't wait to see how this all played out. Once the Kool-Aid had been made, all of the girls tried it, and almost in unison all said, "This is so nasty!" Britton spoke up and said, "Well, it's better than nothing!" Bless his heart, he had tried so hard and couldn't please those girls! They kept going on and on about how bad it tasted and how they should have just let them fix it the right way. As quickly as they were dishing it out, he dished it right back and said, "You should just be thankful you have something to drink. There are people out there who are probably really thirsty." As soon as he said that, I called him into the dining room and gave him the biggest hug possible. What he said had brought me to tears. Something else to keep in mind is these kids all get along great. They were just giving each other a hard time and no one's feelings were hurt in the process! I would have stopped it if it had gotten that far. 

 For the longest time that night I kept replaying Britton's words in my head..."Just be thankful you have something...". As a society, people want the things that are better than what they have. Some people aren't satisfied until they get their specific wants. Now don't get me wrong. It's not a bad thing to want something. But it is a bad thing when that is the only thing a person focuses on. Some people aren't content with the things they have. As Christians, being content is one thing that we need to strive for. Philippians 4:11 says, "Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content." We need to take a step back sometimes and realize that God will take care of all of our needs. He may not take care of the wants, but we can be content in knowing that we have a loving God who wants what is best for us and will provide it in His time. I speak from experience when I say it is definitely hard to wait and be patient. But I have also come to realize that if I do what God wants me to do and obey Him, everything else will fall into place. 


Our kids amaze me so much. What a blessing it is to get to see them grow and mature in the Lord. It is also an amazing thing when they say just the right things that put everything else into perspective.