On Giving Thanks in the Lenten Season

For the last few years I have been a faithful reader of Ann at A Holy Experience, taking solace in her failures, triumphs, and attitude towards her walk with the Lord.

While I have never read her actual book One Thousand Gifts, I have read enough of her to understand her ideas and concept behind it. And because she is generous in creating her Joy Dare and challenge of finding the gifts of the every day, I am finally actually utilizing what she has offered.

Really it started as I prayed for a way to bring a change of thought and attitude to some of our "other children." All too often in this line of work--at least here in American it seems--a pervasive attitude of entitlement creeps into the thought patterns of these children. Ironically because there are so many incredibly generous people pouring into their lives, they begin to lose the sense of thankfulness and instead begin to expect the generosity.

In the last few weeks in particular, I really heard a negative spirit of "me" creeping into some voices in the cottage, and as we were moving into the Lent season, I felt God prompting me to put the challenge to them to start looking for all the things to be thankful for in their lives.

Loath to ask them to do something I do not do myself, I will be posting my own Thanksgivings. Probably in chunks because while searching them out in my life is not so hard, sitting down and stealing enough time every day to write about them doesn't always happen (enter realism).