Reach out and touch someone, it’s Thankful Thursday

Last evening we attended “First Wednesday” at our church. It is a service that is held on the first Wednesday of every month. There was lots of singing along with a great message. I love the singing although I know I don’t sing very well.
The message came from 2 Corinthians:

3Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. 5For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.
This passage says a lot.

First of all, we can find comfort in God. When times get tough God will be there to comfort you if you only let him. I think times are tough right now, don’t you agree?
Secondly, we will have trouble in our lives so expect it, deal with it, make the best of it and go on with your life. Jesus had troubles. He dealt with them.
And lastly once you get those troubles behind you, it’s time to pass that wisdom and comfort along to your fellow man.
So when trouble comes calling, thank God because it will make you a better person and allow you to provide comfort to others.

Here is my Thankful Thursday list:

1. I am thankful that my family wasn’t hurt worse in the recent accident that they had. Things could have been a lot worse.

2. I am thankful that my life hasn’t always been easy because knowing me like I do I could have easily become lazy.

3. I am thankful that it’s National Prayer Day and that we live in a country where it is ok to say that.




4. I am thankful that I am still pushing along on my fitness program. I did 40 minutes on the elliptical trainer this morning. I haven’t lost any more weight but I am feeling great.

5. I am thankful for the last time my boat broke down. Let me explain.

About two years ago we were going fishing. As we headed up the river, the motor all of a sudden revved up high and we quit moving. We had sheared the main shaft but we didn’t know it at the time. There was nothing we could do except row. So we rowed over to the bank and then decided what to do next. It was several miles back to the boat landing (against the wind and tide) but there was a dock a few yards down the bank. We opted to row to the dock and beg for help. I say beg because in my mind I imagined a southern redneck coming out of his house toting a shotgun and telling us to get the heck away from his dock. That wasn’t the case. When we got there I tied the boat to one of the cleats and walked up to the house to ask for directions back to the landing so that I could return home and get our other boat.

Up at the house, I called to see if anyone was around. An elderly man came down the steps and told me that he and his wife had been watching us and knew we needed help. He said it would be ok to leave the boat tied there until we could get help. I told him what happened and he offered to drive me to the landing. So my oldest son and I accepted the kind offer. It took most of the day to get home, get my other boat, and then return to the dock.

All the while my wife stayed on the porch and talked with this elderly couple and my younger son sat on the dock and fished. As it turned out, they were very lonely even though they had several children. Their children had problems of their own and seldom visited so they were all alone in their big house. As we pulled away from the dock they thanked us for such a wonderful afternoon in their otherwise empty lives. The following weekend, we got several plants together and brought them to the couple as a way of saying thank you. So what started out as something negative was turned into something positive. Reach out, reach out and touch someone.

Have a great day,

Greg