Sorry I’m a day late. I was out of town this past Sunday and George Stull, our interim student pastor, continued our SYNC series at Cross Point Nashville with a message on joy. I have known George for almost four years and not only is he an incredible communicator, he’s a first class guy. You won’t find a better friend and a person who lives out what he teaches.

I was listening to his message from Sunday in the car and I thought his first point on joy was brilliant. You can listen to his entire message HERE. But point one was simply that JOY IS A GIFT. He went on to say, “We need eyes to see that all of life is a gift. Breath is a gift. Being able to love and be loved is a gift. Having the ability to be forgiven and forgive others is a gift.”

This is so true. I think most of us live with a disease. It’s the disease called “taking life for granted.” Every day the sun comes up and we’re like, “Big deal.” Babies are born, our kids learn to speak, rain falls, plants grow, and yet we seem more amazed with the latest T.V. show. Lives are transformed by the power of Christ, laughter happens, hugs are given, waves crash, spiritual gifts are used, and yet we miss it because we are focused on getting a raise at work.

We live with a sort of blindness to life. A blindness to the fact that life is good and more importantly God is good. I’m going to make an extra effort this week to choose joy. I’m going to try to view everything in my life as a gift and live with a thankfulness toward God for those gifts instead of taking them for granted.

What is one thing you are thankful for today that you might normally take for granted?

Join the conversation! (If you’ve been lurking around for a while and have never commented this is a great opportunity for you to jump in…go ahead you know you want to.)