Each morning as I drove to work, I was left breathless with the beauty that surrounds us.  Watching the leaves on the trees turn various shades of red, orange and gold was nothing short of miraculous!  Every year I tell myself, "This is the most beautiful Fall I ever remember.”

 Our gorgeous Colorado skies change in a moment’s blink of an eye, expressing God's extravagant creative abilities.  Perpetual motion.... that’s His creation.  He speaks a word and it continues on forever, filled with life, breathing new life into dead things over and over again.

 How easily we miss such reminders of our Loving Heavenly Father's blessings!  Concentrating on the traffic in front of us, behind us and beside us, we find ourselves competing for the split second gain we might obtain in our journey to the office, store, or home.  Grumbling at the mistakes others make in their driving practices, we enter our day with our brows crumpled and our lips pressed firmly together.  Fellow coworkers, for those who work outside the home, are over heard complaining about the company, their pay, their bills, their kids, their....the list goes on and on.  At home we make an exasperated cry at the laundry pile that continues to grow, or the bills that arrive in the mail, or the empty refrigerator.... or....and the list goes on.

 How easily it is to become so entangled with the things of this world!  How quickly we forget to thank our Father that we even have a job, that we have many kinds of clothes, a car, and a family to come home to!  The next time you catch yourself with the words, "I hate..." or "I can't stand....,"  Stop, and instead turn it around and say, "Thank you Lord!"  You will be amazed how quickly that heaviness that presses upon you will lift and how differently the world will appear.  You will also be amazed at how much sharper you’re thinking and problem-solving abilities will become.  After all, you've just aligned yourself with the Creator of the Universe by giving thanks and praise!

~ ~   Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift  2Cor. 9:15 NKJV

Shannon Parish has retired from full time service as a Co-Senior Pastor, in order to pursue and further develop the ministry of Sarah's Tent and her business of Completed People, LLC.  A cartoonist, illustrator and creative life coach, Shannon devotes her life to encouraging those who are fed up with the 'status-quo' and are determined to discover and pursue their purpose and destiny in life.

In addition to Sarah's Tent, Shannon invites you to visit her other web sites at: www.completedpeople.com and  http://shannonparish.com

(c) copyright 2006 All world rights reserved, Shannon Parish, Completed People, LLC. For reprint permission, please email me.

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