Thanks to God...

            This country has taught me to appreciate many things.  I have learned to be thankful for a common meal.  I have come to value the clothes on my back.  I have a newfound desire for a more simplistic life.  But above all I learned something from the people of this country.

            The other day when I entered the kitchen, the cleaning lady, Margarita, was doing dishes.  “Good Moring’ she said. (In Spanish, of course)  So I replied, in my mediocre Spanish “ Good morning, how are you?”  “Good, Thanks to God” Margarita answered.  I began to dwell on this.

            So many times I have heard Hondurans answer with “Gracias a Dios.”  They thank God for something as simple as daily living.  Living and living well is important to survival of themselves and family.  In the States, we take a sick day or medicine and don’t give it a second thought.  But here they attribute every day to God and give thanks for everything.  They understand that “God holds in his hands the beginning, the middle, and the end of all that is.”  Because they know this they praise him all the more.

            But in the states, we think we have control over situations.  We think this because we have not experienced poverty, hunger, parasites, bad water, and barely inhabitable living conditions.  I rarely think about all things belonging to God; the beauty of this world, the wonder of its creatures, and the miracle of human life.  So, I try.

            I try to thank him for the simple aspects of life; the chances he gives me, the health I have, and the encounters with his people.  If I know God is in this place, why aren’t I signing nonstop, dancing without ceasing, and praising without end a God that is infinite?

 

…the earth is full of his unfailing love.

       -Psalm 33:5b-