Time to Count Some Blessings

When upon life's billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

Are you ever burdened with load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings; ev'ry doubt will fly
And you will be singing as the days go by.

When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold.
Count your many blessings; money cannot buy
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.

So amid the conflict, whether great or small,
Do not be discouraged, God is over all.
Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey's end.

©1856-1926 John Oatman, 1851-1921 Edwin O.Excell
Words and Music by John Oatman Jr & Edwin O.Excell

It is easy to "get down" at times, especially when we let our eyes take over instead of letting God guide our lives. Sickness is my tormenter, I have decided. It only seems "reasonable" that a loving God would want us to be well all the time, right?

Now in our "little family," it seems that someone is just about always sick. My mother is convinced that some enemy somewhere is bombarding us with germ warfare. Who knows, maybe she is right! All I know is that I have been stuck in the house for nearly this whole "winter"---and I use the term loosely, because it has not been a real winter---with 5 grouchy children and their equally "happiness-challenged" dad/step-dad. (We all know that I'm NEVER grouchy, right? NOT!)

So, having been deprived of winter, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's, Valentine's Day and every other happy occurrence of the season due to unexpected death, injuries, and disease, I decided it was time to count some blessings.

This week, I say "so long" to a pen pal that I have had for somewhere close to a year now. I meant to look it up, but I have not yet. Alice is a 86-year-old Miami native with a son who has Down Syndrome. She is a fiercely independent, vivacious lady that I met on eBay, and we hit it off and have shared a year of wonderful times, all via email. But alas, as we all do, Alice has had her share lately of physical challenges, and her time is limited, so she is going to sadly sign off for a while, at least until she can catch up on some of her own "to-do-list." She has been a great source of encouragement and laughter for me over the last year or so, and I will miss our "talks." But she has indeed been a blessing!

Word came this week, too, that friends Fred and Dot who are battling health problems in South Carolina got some good news this week. Dot had been hospitalized and was looking at having to go to an assisted living facility because Fred needs to look into his own health concerns. Dot suddenly got well enough to even get up and walk, and it was decided she could return home, at least for now. That is another blessing.

Email came tonight that Tim's cousin, Ron H., is back on American soil tonight. Praise God! He made it back from Iraq and is reportedly in Oklahoma somewhere making his way back to his family in South Dakota. He reported police escorts of their busses and waving and cheering citizens along the route. That is heart-warming. We still have several young men in harm's way over there, but we trust that God will graciously bring them home soon as well. What a blessing it truly is to live in this great country and be protected by the best military on earth!

The kids and I are plugging away at the house cleaning that is going VERY slowly, due to everyone having to stop occasionally and rest because we are all so sick. The stack of dirty dishes I attacked today reminded me of the poem I decoupaged for my mother one time:

Thank God for dirty dishes.
They have a tale to tell.
While other folks go hungry,
We're eating very well.
With home and health and happiness
We shouldn't want to fuss,
For by this stack of evidence
God's been very good to us!
(author unknown)

I could say ditto for dirty clothes (at least we are not naked), and the car that has not been washed all winter (we have a way to get around.)

The car that is in the shop doesn't seem to be as bad as we were worried it might be (some kind of gear box versus the whole transmission,) so that is happy news, too.

"Bonus time" is right around the corner, and we can fix eyes and teeth and septic tanks and cars, pay all the medical bills of the winter, etc. We have heat, telephones, and indoor toilets (contrary to what some of our Northern family members believe!) and tornado season doesn't start for a couple of months. :)

And finally, as I said in my last blog, my greatest blessing is that I have all five kids and one husband safe and sound with me tonight. I have no missing or wayward kids, no run-aways, no drug-addicted teens. My husband is here--not out "running with the boys." The fact that we missed State Tournament this weekend due to raging flu on the team pales in comparison to the blessings of knowing that each and every boy is safe in his parents' care, and that Tuesday morning, they will return to a school where the teachers not only care about their education but also about their character and their souls.

Yes, indeed, count your many blessings---name them one by one---and it will surprise you what the Lord hath done....