Let there be thanksgiving...

Have you ever known a person that is just impossible to please??  No matter what you do, you're never going to be able to satisfy them?  (And how many of you secretly wanted to slap that person by the end of your time with them...or worse?)  I've felt like that with my kids before.  They always get so jealous of the little pre-K'ers, because they get snacks everyday.  So, the other day, we had snacks.  We made the cutest little snowmen snacks:  marshmallows for the body, pretzels for arms, raisins for buttons, and mini M&M's for eyes...and then we "glued" it all together with frosting (my parents probably wanted to kill me...).  It floored me how many kids threw almost the whole thing away:  "Mrs. Wilcox, I just don't like that..."  Seriously??  It was frosting...what better snack could there be in the world??
Now, how many times have I been that person?  Yesterday is a great example for me...in fact, it's almost embarrassing to admit how good of an example it is.  I griped when I thought I had to go to school at regular time, then griped again when I found out it was canceled because I was already dressed and ready to go.  I was bored, so I went to the office to see Kade, then got frustrated when I worked in the office and he was working in another room.  How many times in the past few weeks have I thought about how nice it would be to have just a day at home, with nothing to do but read and sit in front of the fire?  Then once I get it, I complain about how bored I am...
By the end of that, I wanted to slap myself.  In some ways, the Lord did.  Look at these words in Ephesians, "Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving."  This isn't the only place in the Bible that mentions the importance of thankfulness and gratitude.  It's throughout.
Think about it.  When I choose to be thankful, my eyes are off myself.  I'm acknowledging several things:  1.)  That I don't deserve to have everything going my way (which is a truth I need hammered into me every single day...), 2.)  That I do actually have things to rejoice in (which is always very true...), and 3.)  That the Lord is more than everything.  When I choose to be thankful to Him in everything, I give Him the praise and the worth that He already deserves.
So...I challenge you (and even more importantly, myself) today with four simple words:  "let there be thanksgiving."