Contentment

I've been thinking a lot about my life lately (wow, I must be getting old!). In our Sunday School class we were having a lesson on the prodigal son and talking about how he left home because he wasn't content with his life. My friend was talking about people now always wanting more, bigger, better stuff and it was like a lightning bolt hit me and I thought "I am content". It kind of surprised me to realize that I am truly happy with my life right now. Since Sunday I have been thinking about how this came to be. I think that it has a lot to do with gratefulness. When I have been praying lately I have been trying to thank God for everything. Does this mean that my life is perfect? Ha, right! Are there things that I would change if I could? Sure!

Here are a few things that I am grateful for:

1. I am thankful for my husband. I wish he wasn't going to be gone for a year but I am thankful for him. For knowing at 15 that he was "the one". For still being madly in love with him 29 years later. For how he makes me feel loved and protected.

2. For my kids and grandson. I wish that Nick, Britt and Holden lived closer so I wasn't missing so much, but am thankful that I have 5 beautiful, healthy children and the cutest grandson ever!

3. For this body of mine. I wish that I didn't have to struggle with my weight but I'm working on it and I am thankful that I don't have any health problems. I can still walk, run (a little), see, hear, etc.

4. For my cars. Do I sometimes wish that I could just buy any car that I want? Sometimes, but I am thankful for our 1997 Suburban that holds my whole family and gets us where we need to go and for our 1993 4-Runner that makes a great back-up. I guess I'm thankful for Kelly's motorcycles? (There's gratefulness I need to work on!)

5. I am thankful for my home. I wish it was finished, wish some parts were bigger, but we have a home. We live in a great neighborhood, have wonderful neighbors, were able to remodel to give us the room we needed and in these days of foreclosure, I am especially grateful for my home.

6. I am thankful for Kelly's job. It would be nice if he didn't have to drive so far but it is a great job. He has good hours, is off on the weekends and makes enough that I could quit my job and be at home.

7. Most especially, I am thankful for knowing God. I am thankful that I was raised in a family that took me to church from my beginning. That I found a partner who shared my beliefs and that we have brought up our children to believe.

I am thankful, grateful and content.