Thankful

A couple of months ago, one of my coworkers suffered the unimaginable. One day his daughter was laughing and playing and in a matter of a few days she was gone. I was able to spend a little bit of time with he and his family as they wrestled, and are still wrestling, with the questions that surround this tragedy. No one knows yet why she died. So many questions, but so little answers.

Obviously this made me reflect on how fragile life is. It made me think of how selfish I am when I am short with my wife and my kids. I often take for granted the blessings that God gives me every day. Namely, the gift of life and health. Too often I find myself getting annoyed at my kids for not listening to my wife and I or messing something up in the house. Often, I expect them to act older than they really are.

James 4:14 tells us that we don't even know what will happen tomorrow and that our lives are "a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes". We don't know what will happen in the next minute. We make plans and schedules and get irritated when things don't go as planned. We get impatient with people when they don't move as fast as we want them to or don't do what we want. The fact is that we need to be thankful for today. We need to take every opportunity to tell those that we love that we love them and not only tell them, but show them. We need to give grace even when it is difficult. We need to be thankful for what God has given us NOW because tomorrow is not promised.