The Christian life is one of gratitude. A heart that is constantly overflowing with thankfulness is a heart close to God!

 The Christian life is one of gratitude. A heart that is constantly overflowing with thankfulness is a heart close to God. 

⏤ A.W. Tozer

It is all about gratitude and prayer! Do you want to be close to God? Count you blessings and pray! It is that simple!  I have come to the conclusion that we can all have peace and joy in our lives if we turn to God, pray, and be grateful! It is all about having a grateful heart. I see so many unhappy people, so many in misery, just so ungrateful, so negative, and full of hate, it is not healthy, and gratitude is so critical as we live this life.  I know I am so grateful for so much. I am even grateful and feel blessed when someone cancels, dismisses, hates, or persecutes me. It is all a blessing, then I can see someone's true colors. I have seen it a few times, heard the stories from others, and read so much on it. It is a blessing when someone cancels you, if they want to give up their friendship with you because you won't join their club of hate and misery, think of it as a blessing, you no longer have to hear their hate, negativity, and misery. It is a blessing. It is not good to surround yourself with haters and unhappy people, you do not need that rubbing off on you, no one does. God wants us to be joyful while we go about on this Earth School journey! I have seen this in the past, it hurts initially, but in retrospect, it is a blessing, a blessing to not have to see or hear anymore hate, rage, indifference, and negativity. It really is all about gratitude. When you are grateful for all, count your blessings, and show thankfulness to God, He gives you peace. I think we need to live with five key components: 1, Gratefulness, 2. Prayer, 3. Positivity, 4. Being loving toward all like Jesus spoke of, and 5. Be joyful in the Lord always! We need to count our blessings for our long lives with our spouses when they pass, we need to be thankful for longtime friends, we need to be grateful for our lives and all God has done for us. I thank God for so much each day, my parents, spouse, upbringing, faith/religion, education, career, siblings, my peace and beach life, and now my retirement, God has been so good to me and I am blessed!  I agree that a heart that is constantly overflowing with thankfulness is a heart close to God!

Today's Gospel-It is all about love! 

John 15:9-17

Jesus said to his disciples:

“As the Father loves me, so I also love you.

Remain in my love.

If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love,

just as I have kept my Father’s commandments

and remain in his love.

“I have told you this so that my joy might be in you

and your joy might be complete.

This is my commandment: love one another as I love you.

No one has greater love than this,

to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

You are my friends if you do what I command you.

I no longer call you slaves,

because a slave does not know what his master is doing.

I have called you friends,

because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father.

It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you

and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain,

so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you.

This I command you:  love one another.”