I'm Thankful to be A Christian Because...

This holiday finds me for the first time, in I don't know how long, with nowhere to go for the holiday; and I am thankful for that. In a blended family with parents that come from blended families, that is surely a rarity. Don't get me wrong, I love visiting my various family members, but sometimes it just gets so tiring. Anyway, that's not what I want to write about today. Today I want to write about why I am thankful to be a Christian. This is part of a Group Writing Project hosted by On the Horizon, The Next Step and Myself.

There are so many reasons to be thanful to be a Christian, that I am at a loss as to where to start, so I'll start the same way I've learned to pray at times. Using my hand, I'll use each of the digits to pray for and be thanful for something today.

Starting with my thumb, the digit closest to me, I am thankful that being a Christian means that I am blessed with a wonderful husband and four beautiful children. You may wonder, how does that relate to being thankful to be a Christian, so I'll tell you. Without God in my life and at the center of my life, I would not have the family that I have today. Most all of you have read my testimony, so you know a portion of who I was before the Lord entered my life. You also know then, that I did not have the blessed family that I have now. So I am thankful to be a Christian because without this designation, I would still be an unhealthy, unhappy broken soul, that belonged to a broken family.

Next, with my pointing finger, I'm praying for and thankful to be a Christian because of the teachers in my life. This includes my pastors, and the other bloggers that teach me more of what it means to be a Christian. Reading His Holy Word, has taught me so much about how to be a Christian and how to have a life full of blessings. I could never express in words adequate enough, how many changes my life has gone through having this Instruction Manual for living my life for God. Learning how to live selflessly, even when I don't do it perfectly all the time, has improved my life so much!!!

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 NKJV

Next with my middle finger, the tallest of my fingers, I will pray for and be thankful that I am a Christian in a country that allows for Christian leadership. And even for those that are not Christian, I am still thankful to be a Christian in this country, where persecution is still relatively mild. Being a Christian in this country, I can be thankful that I can minister to others, and worship my God, without fear of repercussions. Knowing God, I live for the moments when I can witness to others, His Good News.

But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. 2 Timothy 4:5 NKJV

Next, with my ring finger, the weakest of all, I am praying for and thankful that being a Christian means that I can help those that are weaker than I. Whether that be with prayers, ministry, or monetary help, being a Christian means that I have the opportunity and the blessed responsibility to help those less fortunate than I. Before I was a Christian, I did not have the heart that I now have for these down trodden, and for the children that I now have. I am thankful for the exhortation that the Word gives to us for these.

"Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?" Jesus said to him, 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets." Matthew 22:36-40 NKJV

Lastly, I pray for and am thankful to be a Christian for the way it has affected me. Being a Christian has shown me that I have so few needs. I pray that I will always remember to store up my treasures in Heaven. Being a Christian has taken my focus off of myself, and put it on those around me. I am thankful to be a Christian, maybe for this reason the most. I can show love to those around me, without shame, and without worry about whether they deserve it or not. Because it doesn't matter. God loves them, and so do I. God loves me, regardless of what I do to earn His Divine Love. For all these reasons, I am thankful to be a Christian. Blessings to all of you, this holiday season.

Please click here to read other entries in this Writing Project.

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