My Journal and Diary
2026
October
Thursday, October 15th, 2026
Giving Thanks Even in Hardship
Here's today's #ThanksgivingJournal - and part of it is in response to someone's comment yesterday about being thankful for the things that have gone bad, not just the things that have gone well.
So, for me...
PAST: I am thankful for the hardships, the failures, the churches who fired me, the friends who abandoned me, the relationships lost, my broken heart many times. I'm thankful for these not because I'm a sucker for punishment, or because I like pain. I am thankful for them because my loving Father has always been about the job of making me into the person he wants me to be. He has disciplined me because he loves me. He has redirected me because he has plans for me; to give me a hope and a future.
PRESENT: There are current disappointments in my life, and I won't resist them, because I am trying to learn from my past experiences. I am thankful that someday I will look back upon them and see his loving hand guiding me through, holding me and protecting me.
FUTURE: I know that on this side of eternity, I will never be "done" with pain. That means that I will never see the end of God's provision and love. He will hold me in those times too, and protect me from myself, and bless me as he seeks to glorify Himself through me.
Thank you, God.