Monday, Oct. 7^th

 “You’re blessed when you get your inside world – your mind and heart – put right. Then you can see God in the outside world” Matthew 5:8 (MSG)

Today I have to be honest and admit I’m not feeling very grateful. I’d planned to start this week with Ron, but recently we had a big whopping fight. On day one, my high hopes for a beautifully deepened and loving week with my husband was quickly dashed and replaced with anger and discouragement. Wow! Talk about being unnerved.

But then something remarkable happened. While I was attending a function at the care facility Ron works for, one of the residents tearfully thanked me for supporting Ron in his role. Stunned, I fumbled out, “Thank-you! I needed to hear that today”. Placing her arm on mine she leaned in as if she had a secret just for me and said, “The Lord told me to tell you.” I cried the rest of the day, every time I thought of her words.  How quickly I was reminded of the power grace and appreciation have when they work together. My obstinate heart was so undeserving. Lately I hadn’t been supporting my husband. I’d been angry and mad at him, while refusing to apologize for my part in our argument. Humbly I told myself to smarten up, and with a softened heart, I was ready to re-start my week of gratitude.

Tuesday Oct. 8^th

 “Be sober and vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” 1 Peter 5:8 (NKJV)

Given the rocky start I had yesterday, I decided to tackle something simple to show Ron how much I appreciated him. Like most men, he loves a nice hot meal ready on the table when he gets home from work. Easy! Enter trusty crockpot meal #52 – delicious chicken tacos! It was my ace in the hole, a home run, a sure fire win! In the 20 years I’ve cooked meals in a crockpot I’ve never had a disastrous meal, of course… until today. Dinner was a complete failure. I came home to a pot full of burnt-to-a-crisp, aromatic salsa doused chicken that will take me until next Tuesday to completely scrape off.

Now, I’m slightly hesitant to over-spiritualize “burnt chicken” but I wouldn’t be surprised if someone out there was trying to thwart my efforts to improve my marriage and strengthen my spiritual walk. I’m no scholar, and Satan may have nothing to do with my dinner mishap, but I do know he wants nothing more than to destroy something God loves and cares deeply for – us – you, me, our marriages, our children, the family. He also knows how integral and prevailing a healthy family is to society. Granted the burnt chicken was another discouragement, but only a minor set back.

Wednesday Oct. 9^th

 “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather in humility value others above yourself ” Philippians 2:3

I’m sensing today my heart may need to re-focus a bit. There are two things that keep running through my mind when I think of ways I can show gratitude to Ron.

1. How will this benefit me and what will I get in return?
2. In giving gratitude I’ll look like a rock star and it will definitely make me feel better about myself.

Oh boy, is this really how I’ve become accustomed to thinking? Thankfully, the above verse came to mind and I re-read something I wrote a week ago:

 “Expressing gratitude to your spouse should be more than mere thank-you’s. Deliberately making a choice to put their needs first without expecting anything in return shows you understand, care and appreciate them. And that is a beautiful thing”

 If I honestly want to show my gratitude for Ron, then the “me’s” and “I’s” along with any selfish expectations need to be removed from the equation, or I’m pretty sure I’ll miss the point.

To read how the week finished off see Part 2.
To read about the idea behind “A Gratitude Journal Exposed” click here.