"Thankful Now" No better time than now to be thankful. So many are waiting for their boat to come in or for a bigger and better opportunity. We can experience but we cannot predict or control the events that happen in every day life. We should learn to recognize between those things we can control and those we cannot. Once these are recognized, we can focus on meaningful and thankful times instead of wasting time trying to control what we cannot. Today is an awesome day to make a new start, a new commitment, to always be thankful now. There is never a better time than the present to step up and step out in faith and stop talking about what you might do. Don't wait for perfect conditions, they'll never come. It's true that some days seem better than others, and sometime things just don't seem well at all. But today is today, what else do you have? Take a risk and be super thankful now, for today, for faith, for family, for food, for fun, and for freedom. Stop waiting till the time is right, the perfect time is now, it begins today, it begins now. It's time to serve, time to witness, and it's time to be thankful, NOW! Take a risk, be diligent in being thankful always. "If clouds are full of rain, they will shower on the earth. A tree can fall to the north or south, but it will stay where it falls. Those who wait for perfect weather will never plant seeds; those who look at every cloud will never harvest crops. Plant early in the morning, and work until evening, because you don’t know if this or that will succeed. They might both do well. (‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭11‬:‭3-4, 6‬ NCV)" Let this Thanksgiving be a launch pad for everyday thankfulness!

One of the main reasons people have no hope is because they have no purpose. Most have no purpose because they never accept responsibility for who they are, much less who they can be. Unless a person taps into their God designed service, the all important purpose of life continues to elude them. Having no sense of purpose creates a life of complaining, blaming, explaining, and bitterness. These folks always find excuses, it's the environment, it's the conditions, it's the situations, it's always something or someone. Because they live in despair and discouragement, they lose sight of all their capabilities and dreams. There is a door to recovery, a place you can find value and purpose in life; it's called "Helping Others". There's some crazy good stuff that happens when you help people. When you help heal the scars of others, your own scars heal. When you help others, you help yourself. Once you believe in helping others, once you take the risk to help, you stop being consumed by your own excuses. When you become willing to be a fountain of help and hope to others, what you draw up from this well, will help make you stronger and better every time you give it away. When you value the life of others by serving and helping them, you find and "release your value". To find and experience value and purpose, your greatest purpose must be the value of helping and serving others.
“This is the kind of fast day I’m after:to break the chains of injustice,get rid of exploitation in the workplace,free the oppressed,cancel debts.What I’m interested in seeing you do is:sharing your food with the hungry,inviting the homeless poor into your homes,putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad,being available to your own families.Do this and the lights will turn on,and your lives will turn around at once.Your righteousness will pave your way.The God of glory will secure your passage.Then when you pray, God will answer.You’ll call out for help and I’ll say, ‘Here I am.’If you get rid of unfair practices,quit blaming victims,quit gossiping about other people’s sins,If you are generous with the hungry and start giving yourselves to the down-and-out,Your lives will begin to glow in the darkness,your shadowed lives will be bathed in sunlight.I will always show you where to go.I’ll give you a full life in the emptiest of places—firm muscles, strong bones.You’ll be like a well-watered garden,a gurgling spring that never runs dry." Isaiah 58:6-11 Help others TO FIND AND  "RELEASE YOUR VALUE".

God gives an amazing peace to those who trust in Him. In a world filled with worry, knowing God gives the assurance that ultimately everything is good, it may not feel good or seem good, but with God it's all good. The hope Gods peace gives isn't a fantasy, it's a hope that creates a belief deep inside that knows there's always a way out, always a way to gain stability, always a way to get back to a balanced walk of life. This hope directs our faith with purpose in every situation. To look and see meaning when the situation says it's meaningless. To look and see gratitude when the situation says its grim. To look and see safety when the situation says suffering. Resilient hope creates a vision to see love when hate shows up, to see beauty in a mess, and to see the positive in opposition. Know that we live in a messed up, imperfect, sinful, and chaotic world, but confident that we will strengthen the weak, challenge the complacent, rescue the lost, and see the potential in people, not just the problem. Resilient hope creates an environment of safety and assurance in a difficult and misunderstood world. When pressure situations arrive, resilient hope never allows the pressure to get between the person and God. Resilient hope says pressure situations pushes them closer to God and God closer to them. Don't let the pressure of situations push you away from God, manage the pressure flow. "because he was teaching his followers. He said to them, “The Son of Man will be handed over to people, and they will kill him. After three days, he will rise from the dead.” But the followers did not understand what Jesus meant, and they were afraid to ask him. (‭Mark‬ ‭9‬:‭31-32‬ NCV)" I will rise, no matter what takes place. Don't be afraid to ask if you don't understand.