Being Thankful

One night as I was talking to my granddaughter Brooke we talked about what it meant to be thankful at all times. I told her even if all she can find to be thankful for is her pinky finger on her left hand then so be it. I told her once in awhile I was going to remind her of her left pinky finger as a way to say remember you do have something to be thankful for. 

The more I teased her about her left pinky finger the more she got the giggles and soon the smile I was originally after from her showed up. I told her I needed to take a picture of the two together because they were showing how this thankful process can really work if we would allow it.  Our problem is we want to concentrate too much on the negative. More pity is found there and we don't have to do anything to improve off of it. 

How crazy is that!  We'd rather wallow in our pity instead of finding a reason to laugh even if its a silly little thing such as thinking about our left pinky finger. We'd rather accept the invitation to keep misery company than to laugh and enjoy life one moment at a time. The choice is ours, its not that hard to choose to be thankful when you have the right focus and carry the right attitude. 

Back to Say Thanks

In our Sunday School kindergarten class today the lesson was about the ten men with leprosy that was healed. Strangely enough for some reason the number of students who showed up for class was ten exactly. With the boys rough-housing each other on the right and the girls anxious to get back to their dolls and kitchen we talked about being thankful.

Difficult as it was to get my point across to the kids it truly did make me think of the ten men with leprosy. Probably so busy being pre-occupied with the world they forgot to stop and thank Jesus for healing them. They had better things to do. Jesus must know they were grateful why go back and waste that time.

The time that gets wasted is the time we fail to show and say our thanks to Jesus. We don't have to be healed of an illness to have something to be thankful for. We can thank Him for the sunshine, our parents, food on the table, a house to live in, the air we breathe and so much more. Things like being thankful for God's love, his grace and mercy and His blessings. We all need to be that tenth person who went back to thanks. It doesn't count if one in the crowd went back to say it for us.

Rules to Live By

A simple set of rules not only for our kids and grandkids to live by but rules for all of us to apply to our lives.

Rule #1 Pray Always

Rule #2 Be thankful

Rule #3 Take responsibility

Rule #4 Choose to be happy

Rule #5 Go to bed with a forgiving spirit

Remember: There are no giants, only mountains yet to climb, so take action!


Pray always. Praying always to God keeps us in touch with our Lord and Savior. Our purpose in life is to establish a good relationship with the Lord and we do that thru communication. If we tried talking to our parents or the teach at school only once a week for an hour or two they wouldn't like it. No relationship can be built on the lack of communication and our relationship with God is no different.

Be thankful. As human's we have the tendency to not be thankful. Tendency?! Wrong word we are flat out very ungrateful people. We can find an excuse to grumble about anything. Instead of looking at what we do have we would rather reflect on what we don't have. Instead of being thankful for the things other people are doing for us we would rather find fault in the things we think we could do better.

Take Responsibility. Too often we fail to take responsibility for our actions. We would rather blame our parents, our teacher, our siblings, the full moon, or the change in the atmosphere for our behavior instead of taking responsibility for it. When we do something whether its good or bad we need to take responsibility for our actions. Own up to what we have done. It's not that good of a thing we have to "own up to" then we need to use this moment to correct whatever it is inside of us that made us do what we did. Spouting off at the mouth and saying, "Well I own up to it, that is just the way I am" is not a good attitude to take. We need to step down off our high horses and our thinking that we are the ones that rule our lives and that everyone gets to do whatever they want in life, good or bad.

Choose to be happy. Daily we need to make the choice to "choose to be happy." Circumstances, people, money, or anything else is responsibility for making us happy. It's a choice we make for ourselves. Many relationships have broken up over the fact that one of the people in the union wasn't being made happy by the other person. That is our job to choose to be happy. It comes from our attitude, our choice to look at things in a positive manner. It's not something we can rely on others to supply us with. Indeed others can make us very happy but its not their responsibility. If our attitudes weren't correct in the first place whatever they did would never have worked. It comes from us.

Go to bed with a forgiving spirit. The best thing we can do for ourselves is to go to bed with a forgiving heart. Doing this forces to deal with things immediately like they should be done instead of sulking over them only to get madder and madder. It's best to take care of it and deal with your differences now instead of later. Hanging on to our anger and hatred for someone is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die. It just doesn't happen, we are the ones who wind up injured from our anger.

Remember, there are no giants, only mountains yet to climb, so take action. Too often we look at things and think they are too big for us to deal with. We get scared at the tasks ahead of us instead of stopping long enough to just move forward in faith, faith in our Lord and Savior that tells us he will never leave us nor forsake us. The only way we can access that promise is through faith. We need to be looking at the size of God not the size of the task in front of us. Instead of holding ourselves back from accomplishing great things we need to take action knowing we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.

Me and My Big Mouth

There is a scripture in the Bible that talks about using our mouths to praise the Lord and speak bad of Him at the same time. The two just don’t mix, they don’t go together, and they don’t belong together.



This is true also of how we talk to or about others as well. It’s not good that we use our mouth to ask our parents for all the things we want and then yell at them the next time for not getting it our way.


We need to use our mouths to praise the Lord and our parents as well. To honor them as God tells us to. We may not agree with what God or our parents are doing but we can always find things to be thankful for and praise them.


Things to be thankful for:
The home they furnish us to live in
The electricity that they pay for
The phone they have that you can use
Transportation to and from school and everywhere else
Tiredlessness nights of working extra hours to pay bills and feed their families
The shampoo in the bathroom, the food in the kitchen
The free smile they have for
The comfort they supply when needed
A needed hug to tell you you’re still love when you make mistakes
The advice they handout that often came to them thru hard lessons they are trying to keep you from going through
The treat they bless you with once in awhile no matter how big or small

Showing respect to others is an important characteristic we need to develop. We are without excuse. We can’t blame the kid down the street or the adult at the store for not having it so we don’t need it either. We need to be responsible for our own actions because when we stand before Jesus some day we are the only ones that will be required to answer for the idle, bad, hateful, rude, thoughtless words we once said or for even those we should have said.


We need to turn our big mouths into one that is full of encouraging words of admiration, esteem, admiration for our parents and God instead of the “give me, give me world” we try to live in.


God knows it’s not easy to control the tongue but He knows it is possible. Our tongue is connected to the things we store in our hearts. If we store selfishness, hatred, anger, resentment, and bitterness that is what is going to come out on our tongue.


Take control of your tongue now before it takes control over you. Life isn’t as bad as we make it out to be so stop dwelling on the negative and look for the good. Where would I be today if I continued to dwell on the hatred I had for the girl who caused my epilepsy. I’ll tell you where, I would still be having stress seizures and never would have been declared “not disabled” anymore. My cancer and the pain I feel every hour of the day gives me a target to dwell on the negative of “Why me?” but where does that get me? Only further in pain in my spirit as well as my body.

Stop! Think first. Speak second. Think about what you say before you say it and you’ll be amazed at the stuff you can cut out of your life giving you peace within and a happiness that can’t be bought with money or material things.


Make a list of the good things you have going for you in your life. Yes there are some if you would truly look. Read it frequently when Satan starts to lead you down the path of ungratefulness. Use your tongue to encourage others not as a weapon to hurt.






Good things in my life:
My cancer is in remission
I have a job
I have a family that cares, a husband that supports me thru all my life’s challenges
I love the color of the blue sky with the blanket of green grass underneath it
I can walk and talk on my own
I have free smiles to give away
I am rich not because of money but because of Jesus being in my life
My house isn’t a mansion or a million dollar estate but it keeps me warm and safe and it’s full of love
I have parents who have worked very hard to achieve what they have for me and the family
My daughter is a hardworking woman passing on to her children the blessings a mom has to offer
My grandkids are tucked away in my heart in a warm and caring spot that longs to see them know Jesus as I know Jesus


The list goes on because I keep adding to it, looking for things to put on it. That is what you need to be doing with your big mouth, listing the good and waiting patiently for the bad in your life to get better. Bad times are used to make us grow, to teach us what we need to learn, to get our attention so we will pay attention to our teacher, Jesus Christ. Instead of asking “why me?” use your mouth to ask “What can learn from this?”

Hard times are the classrooms where we learn the most. They are not a weapon to be used to beat someone over the head with wondering why they put us through what they did, or why didn’t they do this or that for us….why….why….why?


Nope, we need to change our why to what. Our out of control mouth to a controlled tongue. An ungrateful heart to a thankful heart. Do this and you’ll be way ahead of a lot of adults and you will find a peace in your spirit that is awesome and long-lasting.






They Call Me, Grandma

Best barn

The preschool class on Sunday was almost empty. It was just one student and I. After the lesson we proceeded to play with the wooden blocks. The object of choice to make was a barnyard.

Block by block we created our barn. The light brown square blocks worked well for hay bales and the blue ones were used for the pond the animals drank from. Although the roof idea we had didn’t work to well the made up pickup with a loading ramp for the animals to walk up did.

As the finishing touches were added Adison marveled over his creation. Over and over again he was anxious to show it off. “I wish Duggan was here to see this,” he kept saying. The more I heard him praise what he saw, the more I thought about how Jesus told us to become as little children.

Content with the wooden pickup, the blocks for water he was pleased with what he had. Unfortunately as we grow up our contentment seems to go away. We start to want bigger and better things. Made up hay bales and wooden sheep just won’t do it anymore. It would do us well to learn from the little kids and get back to true contentment. The one we had at our made up tea parties, thrown together Halloween costumes, and sticks for a pony to ride.

Be thankful for what you have. More isn’t always better. It depends on the attitude in which it is received, taken, and kept.

They Call Me, Grandma

Kid DEES It's Not Fair

“It’s not fair Grandma, it’s not fair,” were the words being expressed by my two granddaughters. They were words I had heard before from them, from their mother when she was little, and from my very own mouth.

What is it about life that we seem to think it should be fair? It would be a wonderful thing but that is not the way it is. Back in the days of the county fair I remember hearing my Aunt inform her two boys that the county fair was anything but fair.

Instead of wondering why the world is full of unfair things we need to learn how to handle these situations. Crying out in anger, getting upset in disappointment, pouting in a corner will not change a thing. If you think about it most of the things we label “unfair” are the situations where we don’t get our way.

Like it or not we have to learn to take the good with the bad, the fair with the unfair. We don’t need to go out of our way to make things unfair for some but we don’t need to go out of our way to make everything “fair” either because it’s impossible.

Is it fair that when I’m on a diet others can eat chocolate and I can’t? Honestly and truly the answer is yes. It’s not other people’s fault I need to lose weight. We need to learn to be thankful for what we get and have and stop looking at things through such negative eyes.

They call me grandma

© 2011 Karen J Gillett @ Pencil Marks and Recipes Publishing

Kid DEES ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Rejoice and be Thankful

In the book of Philippians in the New Testament it talks about how we are to rejoice in the Lord always. It then tells us to be anxious for nothing but in everything pray with thanksgiving.

Rejoice! Thanksgiving! Those are the keys that will open many doors for us. Doors not to get us what we want but doors used to get us through good times and bad. It doesn’t matter how things are going we are told to rejoice in the Lord always! There should be no half ways, part of the ways, when the mood strikes us way but ALWAYS.

Our rejoicing is not for the bad that are going on. Our rejoicing is for a God who loves us and will no abandon us. Our rejoicing is not for the lack of things we may need but our rejoicing is for the things we have no matter how few.

If you can learn this lesson early in life you will be way ahead of many adults. I struggled with this myself in my young adulthood. I couldn’t see a reason to rejoice. What in the world did I have to be thankful for? I was covering my own eyes to the blessings God had for me if only I would look.

Drawing near to God doesn’t get us out of trouble, rough times, hurt, and pain it gets us through. It helps us to come out ahead in life instead of further behind. The choice is ours. We can move forward using rejoicing and being thankful or allow life to hold us back via grumbling and complaining.

Dear Heavenly Father my rejoicing today is rejoicing in Your watchful eye. I love knowing You are there to walk me thorough the obstacle course of life. I’m thankful for the paths You have opened up. Forgive me for fighting against the ones You closed. Thank you for Your love. Thank You for patience. And most of all thank You for caring enough to send Jesus into my life. I’ll love you always, thank You for loving me!

© 2010 Karen J. Gillett @ Pencil Marks and Recipes Publishing

Thanksgiving: A Beginning that Has no End

If you look back in history you will find that Thanksgiving Day was created out hardships, misfortune, and difficult times. The crops the Pilgrims had planted that year were failing. They were having what we would call, “A bad day or several bad days or even a bad year.” Their crops were their source of food for the year. They didn’t have a Wal Mart to run to, a Safeway to shop at, they had to grow what they needed to live off of.

It definitely was a time period that was very rough and it was because of that they decided to have what is called, “a fast of praying.” It would be a time period in which they would go without food in order to dedicate all their efforts to praying to the Lord their God. It was God who had brought them to this new country in the first place and they knew He could see them through this as well.

It was from the first idea that someone thought of something better to do. It was suggested that instead of a fast they needed to have a feast in order to be thankful for what God had already given them. This was the birth of Thanksgiving.

Try as we might to change that part in history to be something its not, such as calling Thanksgiving Day, “Lucky Thursday” the birth and purpose of the holiday remains the same. It’s a time to stop and instead of showering Heaven with our complaints through our actions we flood Heaven with our thanks.

Being thankful doesn’t come once a year. It’s not reserved for only the situations in our lives that are good. It’s a time that should be lived year around no matter what. It’s where we put our focus. It’s what we have placed in our hearts.

This Thanksgiving…..

If your brother or sisters beat you to the table first and take all your favorite goodies you can be thankful you have legs that get you there whether you’re first or last.

The meal may be small but you can be thankful you have any food at all.

The house may be lonely because a love one is missing but you can be thankful for the love ones that still remain.


The whole thing is all in how and where you look. If you look for the negative, bad things in life you will find them every time. If you look for the good in all situations to be thankful for it can be found as well.

Look and live out your gratitude daily. It will get you further in life than you can even imagine! It’s a task we will be doing for all eternity in Heaven so start today on this action that has a beginning but indeed no end.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all!!!!

And thanks to you Jesus for who You are and who we can be thanks to You!


© 2009 Karen J. Gillett @ Pencil Marks and Recipes Publishing

Up Up and Away, Thank You Jesus

Being thanksgiving season the pre-school children at Sunday School and I decided we wanted to be like the one leper in the Bible story that was healed. Out of 10 who were healed only one came back to thank Jesus for all He had done. Last Sunday we made thank you cards for mom, dad, sisters, and brothers. We even managed to slip a thank you card into the preacher’s office while he was busy preaching in the Sanctuary.

This Sunday it was God’s turn to get a thank you from our class. After writing thank you notes we tied them to the string of a helium balloon. The 4 and 5 years olds thought for sure that would get the messages to God. Written on the side of the balloon was the biggest reason we are thankful for God, His son Jesus Christ. God sent us Jesus to die in our place to conqueror sin and for that we should be forever thankful.

After releasing the balloon we went back in to pray to God to see if the balloon message had arrived. Jayleena in her soft 5 year old voice prayed, “I hope you liked your balloon, I know I did.” Meanwhile Kade was anxious to go back outside to check to see if the balloon was truly gone. Sure enough it was. Jesus had gotten our message.

Some day this class of 2008 will understand what an awesome God we have. We don’t need to send off our messages tied to helium balloons. He hears them straight from our hearts. He knows what we are thinking, He sees it in our faces, and it shows in our attitudes. Indeed long before the balloon was even released the message it carried had arrived in Heaven via our hearts.

Your message has been sent kids. Listen quietly for His return reply.

Copyright 2008 Karen J. Gillett @ Pencil Marks and Recipes Publishing