By Ricinda Perry

Well obviously we have reached the Thanksgiving week marker of Goal #1.  How are you feeling?  This week I want to encourage you and thank you for joining me on this journey.  I know that you are all working so hard trying to get your spiritual, marital and physical health into shape.  No matter your level of success, the fact that you are thinking about making improvements is a great step.  Do not give up.

To keep my mind focused on the important things during this hectic time of the year, I had my daughter help me color an eight foot tree.  We cut off some of the white table paper I have on a roll for coloring and made a gorgeous bare tree together.  The leaves came from a crazy slow shopping trip at Michael’s.  Let me pause and ask you if you have ever taken a small child into a colorful store chocked full of fun and shiny things?  The good news is that we made it out of there; the bad news is … I got a whole lot more than leaves thanks to a sweet toddler’s prodding.  Every morning Victoria and I paint something she is thankful for on a leaf and glue it onto our tree.  We also read the thankful Scripture written on the top of the tree:  “In everything give thanks for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus” – 1 Thessalonians 5:18.  I wish you could see how she stops everything she is doing to quote this scripture at the most random times.  Little arm outstretched, neck straining and with a tiny finger pointing, she speaks out in the loudest preacher voice she can muster…

The point of this story is that it is had a large impact on me.  I realized as I look at her thankful leaves that I have so much to be thankful for in my life.  Taking a few minutes in the morning to reflect upon something or someone that I treasure and then to pray over them has blessed me.  Take a moment and think of your spouse and all they do – tiny and big.  Think of your Creator and how He knows everything about you and every matter concerning you.  He is always looking out for your ultimate good and takes your hurts personally.  If you are feeling a bit down, know that He knows the well-deliberated plan for your life and how all things must fall into place for you to fulfill your destiny.  Think about your family – even with their imperfections, you have people to love you in your day-to-day life.  If you are blessed to have gainful employment, be thankful for the opportunity to bring home a paycheck.

So Brad Pitt got it right in Friends:  “Look at her standing there with those yams. My two greatest enemies, Ross. Rachel Green and complex carbohydrates.”  The foods you have tried to avoid over the past month are making their way toward you.   As you join friends and loved ones this week, go ahead and take time to enjoy the complex carbohydrates around the table.  You deserve it … just stop at one piece of pie, and skip the extra cookie.

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