This year’s trials have been many, across a number of fronts. I can’t recall a time in my life when there’s been so much happening when I’ve wondered in those quiet moments how we even got through it.
Gratitude is a moral standard of the highest excellence. It is a sentiment of kindness, love, and goodwill towards someone who has helped us.
For the believer, it was Jesus Christ who has helped us escape an eternity of judgment through the blood He spilled on Calvary and His resurrection to secure our salvation.
It was Halloween. I drove my kids with me to pick up some of our favorite chicken for dinner. Along our way, we drove past a local church—once a Baptist church, now rebranded as a community church. We noticed banners, loud music, inflatables, games, and an enormous amount of foot and car traffic crossing the streets near where we live. This spectacle was an announcement of their annual fall festival. According to their church’s social media account, they had over two thousand people in attendance this year!
It wasn’t too long ago that my daughter, aged 6, came home from spending a weekend at Abuela’s. She ran down the list of all the fun things she did and concluded that she had a new friend that she played at the local park with. I thought to myself, friend…really? Highly unlikely.
Son,
In just a few hours it will be 2018. In all reality, there really isn’t anything magical about it. For many people though, it just feels like a new beginning. It feels like a chance to do better in more ways than one.