At the end of 2014, I found an article about a blessing jar. It was a do-it-yourself product that required an empty mason jar, some paper and pen. I believe the directions called for you to write something you were grateful for every day, fold it up and put it in the jar.
What an awesome idea to be able to look back at little moments you found to be a blessing, but may not stand out at the end of the year like some of the bigger things you’ve experienced. I wanted to try it so I waited until all my spicy sweet pickles were gone, cleaned the jar really good, found a small notebook and set it on my dresser.
As with anything, the first few weeks were good. I often found myself in horrible moods, forcing myself to think of a blessing to bring back some joy to my day. It often worked. We’d be surprised how we let one little issue impact our whole day.
Mine is usually traffic. I have horrible road rage and by the time I get home from my commute, I just want to crawl in the bed and blink it all away. I am slowly gaining control over this emotion and the blessing jar was definitely a step in the right direction.
So today, I opened my jar to recap some of the things I’ve felt blessed to experience in 2016.
Great-Great aunt passed away at 91 years old
My family has been extremely blessed. Although we have lost a few loved ones, the longevity in my family is definitely something I’m thankful for. My great-grand mother is alive and breathing in her 80’s, so I did see her sister’s passing as a bitter blessing. Thankful for so many years we did have her.
Momma blessed me with the money to catch up on my bills.
I’m an only child and although people love to believe that means I get everything I want, it is not always the case. What it does mean is that whenever I am in a bind or in a situation that I feel may be too much for me to handle, Momma got me.
I’m blessed that God loves me enough
Obviously, I’ve had a lot of failed relationships, friendships, etc. I have moments were I feel like everyone leaves, male wise. It isn’t a feeling that’s enough to keep me from moving forward, but it does make me sad at times. The moment I think about how God loves me enough to stay, I’m okay.
I have a working vehicle that gets me to and from work and money for gas
Yep…
Woke up this morning in my right mind (twice)
There are so many days I feel like I’m borderline insane, this is a blessing everyday!
Blessed to reach February book sales goal
It’s always a great feeling to meet or exceed a goal.
Expressions of Praise ministered at another church
I’ve been a praise dancer for 19 years. We’ve had some great years and some bad years, but God has sustained us. Being called to minister at other church’s means the world.
Now that I’ve looked at these, I realize a lot of them were from 2015. It was still great to be able to reflect on them, but I look forward to a fresh start tomorrow.
I may have not accomplished a lot of the things I set out to do, but I cannot lie and say that God hasn’t blessed me. We so often want to just praise Him for the big, sea-splitting miracles and forget about those everyday ones that so many people don’t have. Shelter. Food. Clothes. Job. So many things I can name that I know I often take for granted. I don’t want to live like that. There is so my joy to be found in celebrating small, daily victories.
After saying a thankful prayer for these blessings, I dumped the paper in the trash, wiped the dust off the jar and put it back on the dresser.
God willing, when tomorrow comes and I’m breathing, I’ll have more to be thankful for.
Do you have a blessing jar or a list of accomplishments from 2016? Please share!
Who is committing to starting (or continuing) their blessing jar for 2017? Can’t wait to see what God does this year!
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