Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. (James 1:17)
 
This Thanksgiving blog post was conceived back on September 12.  It was four days before my husband’s open-heart surgery, and fears were on the attack.  The Holy Spirit gave me a curious weapon for the battle: thankfulness.  He prompted me to write down a list of specific things I could be thankful for in this trial.  Here are excerpts from my list:
 
I am thankful for …

• medical knowledge and surgical technology and techniques to replace a defective heart valve and a stretched-thin aorta
• the skills, experience, and dedication of the surgeon, anesthesiologist, and nurses involved in the surgery
• the people whose “ordinary” work behind the scenes blesses us – the hospital housekeeping staff who keep the hospital clean and sanitized, the lab technicians who process the endless blood tests, the skilled technicians who keep the equipment and computers functioning, the administrators who schedule staff and manage inventories of supplies
• the pig that supplied the valve going into John’s chest
• our church family, extended family, friends, and John’s coworkers who have expressed care and concern
• people to be with me on surgery day
• a very timely series of radio messages from Alistair Begg entitled, “My Times Are In Your Hands”

How appropriate that we are celebrating Thanksgiving while studying the first chapter of James, which contains God’s instructions for handling trials.  I am convinced that, even in the toughest trial, God gives us good and perfect gifts.  The trial itself can be considered a gift, since it has a good purpose – to mature our faith.
 
This Thanksgiving week, if you are between trials and things are going great, thank God for that!  If you are in the midst of a trial, make your own list of the good gifts God is giving you through it, and be thankful.  Thankfulness – specific, articulated thankfulness – will help you persevere and overcome.

In Christ,
Carol Gilbert, Prayer Chair
Calvary Community Church of Brea

P.S.  Nancy and Ken Sivcovich ask for prayer for Ken’s cousin, Patty, who suffered a cerebral hemorrhage on Friday.  Patty can’t speak and is paralyzed on one side.  At last report, doctors had not succeeded in stopping the bleeding.  Patty and her husband are believers.