Pennies for Thought

Confession time. Shocking, I know.

I wish this was the first time I've had to make this confession, but it's not: Exhibit A. Life, true to it's nature has been happening again, and my bedroom has gotten to be a mess. Honestly, can I just tell you that to me, this alone is the argument that completely defeats any idea that evolution could exist. Clearly the natural order of things is chaos not order.

Sadly my room hasn't arrived to the state in the link above yet, but we're headed there. But true to His form, the Lord has been showing me things through the processes of life. Funny God, how He likes to do that!

See these little boogers? I keep hearing rumors about how they're going to become obsolete. "They have no value," is word around the street. I'm not sure who's street, it's not my street, but somebody's street perhaps because the rumor is clearly out there. I'm relatively certain it's just a rumor because mathematically it would be a real bear not to have the pennies for change. And besides, the little cash register candy dishes full of them have become so commonplace, I know I myself a thousand times have said, "keep the pennies."

The more the dollar drops, the less they're worth, and even kids today are so savvy that they no longer fall for the good old "I'll give you SIX pennies for your ONE dime" scam. So what good are they? And so this weekend as I was cleaning up the mess that is my bedroom along with the matching disasters elsewhere throughout the DePriest household I kept coming across all these random pennies. And walking through picking up the refuse (boy, it might even sound worse than it is...) I kept finding all these pennies, and out of the sheer laziness that I excel in, I found myself just tossing them into the trash. It's not like they're worth anything, right?

Yeah well, I'm guessing I was about 15 cents in when the conviction came. Not so much over the pennies, but the attitude.

It made me think of the chorus from an old hymn.

Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

When you think of it that way, it's amazing how things stack up, and yes, the pun is totally intended.

How much do we take for granted in life? How many of the "little things" do we dismiss as not having any real value?

The financial lesson is there. If I truly have said "keep the pennies" a thousand times, I've thrown away at least $20 or more all total, but it goes so far beyond the "dollars from cents."

What about all the blessings we bypass every day without ever acknowledging what a gift they are. A phone call from a friend. Having someone stop and pray for you, or having the opportunity to pray for someone else. What about the next breath? It's a gift you know, all over the world people are mourning others who didn't get theirs. Do you have a roof over your head tonight? (If no, where'd you get the computer access?) What about your loved ones? Even the ones who drive you nuts, be thankful for their presence in your life, yes, even teenagers. (ha, ha, just kidding - I love teenagers, they are the hope of the future.)

Keep counting. The clothes we wear, a thick head of hair (felt poetic for a minute) I know several boys I grew up with who would wish for a thick head of hair to be thankful for.

We've all heard the phrase, "an attitude of gratitude," it's something to be cultivated. It sincerely is worth taking the time. Things are tough all over, and the "boats everyone is in" don't exactly seem like luxury lines lately, but the fact of the matter is, we are blessed.

It's Christians, I mean. We have a God who loves us, and even in the storms, He remains on His throne. He's not distant or distracted, He's not only alert but mindful of us. He gave us this day, a life to live, and a purpose for living it. He loves us and longs for us. He promises to be our hope and our strength and to walk with us through the valleys, lead us through the darkness and never leave us nor forsake us, not even for a moment.

Take the moment, count your blessings, name them one by one...

You may just find your treasure chest is full.