Let the whole earth shout triumphantly to the Lord!
Serve the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
Acknowledge that the Lord is God.
He made us, and we are his—
his people, the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him and bless his name.
For the Lord is good, and his faithful love endures forever;
his faithfulness, through all generations.
Psalm 100 (CSB)
A posture of gratitude can shift our perspective and our hearts to see God in the present moment. In suffering pain and grief, in dealing with annoyances and inconveniences, in waiting for hope and good news, we can practice being thankful. This seemingly trite exercise has the power to change our groans to praise and to make us aware of God, who is always with us.
Practicing gratitude can look like writing down a list of things you’re grateful for — the beauty of fall, the laughter of children, the gathering of family — or it can be a list of things God has done in the past that you want to remember again. It can be bullet points of God’s promises that you’re clinging onto in the thick of things or how you see God working in those around you. Whatever it is, write it down today or say it — in a journal, on a post-it, or even in the comments below.
And on a day set aside for counting blessings, we want you to know we are so very thankful for you.
Those of us working behind the scenes of (in)courage and those of us sharing our words and our stories never once take it for granted that you show up in this place, inviting us into your inboxes and your lives, sharing your own stories and hearts. Thank you for being part of this community.
Happy Thanksgiving to you all! I am thankful for you sharing your lives, thoughts, and prayers with us all.
Ditto what NancyM said! Thankful for the iron sharpening iron of this site. Blessings from Him!
Thanks for all of YOUR encouragement. Your sharing makes God more real.
Happy Thanksgiving to you all. Thankful for your loving inspiring stories of life and God’s love. Blessings over you all
Your website has changed my life and has brought me even closer to God. I have been inspired by the Incourage Bible studies- especially kindness and courage. Thank you for being here and including me in your family.
Thanks to all who make this site possible, you are a blessing to my life, and to many, many others. What you do is important beyond what you will ever know. Have a wonderful day and a blessed coming season
After recent various unfixable diagnoses for my husband, I am grateful for the health care providers and the tools that they have at their disposable that make the unfixable quite manageable.
Scottie,
Abba Father Please bless Scottie & her husband. Help them to keep his diagnosis manageable. Shower them with your love & grace. If it be your will send your healing touch to her husband. Mostly keep showing them little glimpses of hope, In Jesus Name AMEN!
Blessings 🙂
So thankful for you ladies too❣️ You make me laugh( which is my favorite) and cry and reflect to know that no matter what God has me every moment of every day. You give me things I can share with others that can also encourage them. So thank you for sharing yourselves with me and all the others that join here. Have a wonderful thanksgiving and know I’m thankful for you all❣️❣️❣️
I am so grateful you guys!!! I love the real stories you tell. And I know I am not alone in my own struggles!
On this day, as I give thanks to God for all the blessings He has showered me with, I include you women of (in)courage. You openly share your lives with us – the beauty and the pain – and help us to know that we are not alone; we have a sisterhood of writers who remind us we have God walking with us on our journey through life. What a blessing you are to so many. May God continue to bless you with all good things.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours as well. So much to be thankful for!
In Courage,
I have been dealing with some minor inconveniences over the past 3-4 weeks. A co-worker fell at home & broke her wrist. She has been out for over 2 months. I covered her shift for her giving me more hours–that is a blessing from God. My Rn unit manager quit suddenly with no notice. We were given an interim manager. She made some sweeping changes, some of which I didn’t like. Then my unit (hospital) was shut down due to low staffing. At first I was scared & nervous. The manager called me & told me I could work in a different unit. I was alright with that as I can choose the days I want to work each week. This unit doesn’t really need a clerical. I don’t have much to do. I was a bit upset over that. Last night I audibly heard God say “For I know the plans I have for you”. “I know God I said”. Then later I was up & started thinking of ALL the blessings I have been given by God. That in & of itself changed my attitude.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Gobble till you wobble.
Blessings 🙂
I am so grateful to all of you for sharing your hearts and souls with all of us every day.
You inspire me to look in to my soul, to experience Jesus and others in a more meaningful way.
And on days when life is facing difficult challenges, your words and stories feed my restless soul.
Thank you, thank you.
I am thank full for you all incourage. For what I learn from you all to do with your lives and the way you bring it into the word of God to bring us closer to God. I learn so much from you all. I bring it into my life to grow closer to God. Thank you so much for what you share. How the stories are so full of the Holy Spirit. To do with you lives. Thank you for God for you all. I pray for you all. All the way from Enniskillen CoFermanagh N.Ireland. A song comes to mind that you get on YouTube. To do with Thanks. It is. “Give thanks with a grateful heart” That is a beautiful song for everything day life and Thanks giving in your part of the world. As I don’t know if any one in Northern Ireland does Thanks giving here. They might. As it not really talked about. We do Harvest at the end of September beginning of October each year to thank God for the food he gives us. Plus the Farmers who grow it and people who make it. Plus we but not now. Become of Covid. We used to bring tuned food pasta and Julice to Church ect. To say Thank you to God. Then the Church would give it to people and Family’s who need it. So we are just celebrating Harvest. No food. If we want to give some food. We are to put in the food bank when shopping instead for the food banks to collect. Love Dawn Ferguson-Little xx
I enjoy reading (in)courage quite often. I feel blessed when I read it. I am thankful for job that’s not seasonal like I had in Oct. Thankful for the sunshine again instead of cold and foggy/cloudy days we’ve had recently. No ice though which is good not to have outdoors. Happy Thanksgiving to you all who continue to support us in our lives. God bless!!
Thank you, ladies, for being here for us! Every morning I search my inbox for your latest message. You start me off on the right track almost every day.
Love,
Irene B
Happy Thanksgiving! I am ever thankful that Christ pursues me, He always returns for the one and that loves me and lives within me. I pray today each of you know how deep and how wide God’s love is!