Guilty or Grateful

This world seems in a mess.  Students of history would tell us that it has been worse. This is our mess, however, and there are times it feels as though it never will be any different.

In my heart I have great empathy for the Syrian refugees. I can only try to imagine what it must be like to live in such fear, or worse in such fear for one's children. I have no comprehension of living in camps with thousands of other refugees, depending on others for every necessity, and knowing that in many parts of the world you are despised simply because you are.

There are child soldiers in Congo and other areas who have been indoctrinated, threatened, and forced to kill their families.People die all over this world for lack of fresh water. They die of dehydration, kidney disease and other conditions simply because there is no local means of getting fresh water.  Children live on dumps and die from starvation and the effects of sniffing glue in Kenya. Approximately 85 young people travel through this city every week being transported across state lines for the specific purpose of sexual slavery. Right here in the buckle of the Bible Belt there are homeless people sleeping in the rain and eating out of garbage cans.  There are marriages falling apart or miserably staying together; where spouses derive no pleasure in each other's company.  There are people languishing in the throes of addiction. There are people in prison who truly did not have any hope for much of anything else for no one told them it could be different.

Yes, it seems this world is in a mess. I contemplate these things as I walk in my quiet, safe neighborhood. I wonder about these matters when I get a drink of water or wash my dishes or take a leisurely bath. I think about these situations when I have the choice of what or where, not if, I will eat my next meal.  It crosses my mind when I look at my kind and hilarious husband.

So, what do I do?  Do I feel guilty because I walk peacefully in my neighborhood where people are better able to take care of their pets than some are able to care for their own children?  Do I feel guilty when I take a long bath after a day that I consider tiring that someone from another part of the world would think was a cake walk? Do I feel guilty because when it rains I can come into a warm, cozy home and be dry?  Do I feel guilty because most days I eat three meals, and I get to eat what I want?  Do I feel guilty because after 41 years of marriage I still find my husband a joy to spend time
with?

I choose to not feel guilty. I choose to be grateful. Certainly, out of that gratitude I am compelled to help where I can with money and time and prayer. I want to choose to "bloom where I am planted."  I want to meet needs where I can, and sometimes that means giving of my time and sometimes it means giving money and sometimes it means praying. Sometimes it means a kind word. Sometimes it means keeping my mouth shut. Sometimes it means caring for my family and sometimes it means reaching out beyond that. I will choose to be grateful and not feel guilty, trying to remain ever mindful of those hurting, for whatever reason. Pain is pain whether we bring it on ourselves or not.

I blame my FitBit for this blog. It is a persistent task master, and the time I spend seeking those 10,000 daily steps is the time I best hear the whisperings of the Spirit. I hear, "be grateful for life's beautiful gifts...don't feel guilty about the beautiful people and activities in your life....help every time and every place you can.  It is arrogant to do otherwise."

For today, I wish you a grateful heart, a blessed Christmas, a new year with peace that passes all understanding of the mess it seems this world is in, and I wish you

Blessings