Thank You for the Windows

by Katherine Craddock

A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength. (Proverbs 17:22, NLT)

Gloomily hunched over my bowl of cheerios, I fully intended to start my day with a full-scale pity party. “Thank you God for this food,” I sighed half-heartedly. Boo hoo. My life was soo bad.

“And thank you for the windows!” my 2 ½ year-old daughter Katie shouted. The windows? Hmm. I guess we did just get new windows.

“Yes, God. Thank you for the windows.” I echoed.

“And thank you for the doors!” she continued. I thought of the small, door-less shacks I had witnessed during a Jamaican thunderstorm. Entire families huddled in living quarters smaller than my back-yard shed, while I vacationed in luxury. Doors are good. We need those.

“Thank you for the doors.” My response was a little louder this time. A slow smile spread across my face.

Katie was on a roll. “And thank you for the walls!” She’s right. Walls are important. Where would we be without walls?

Within seconds, we were laughing and shouting thanksgiving to the Lord at the top of our lungs. Arms raised to heaven, we thanked God for our beautiful house, our pets, and even our shiny new dishwasher.

My toddler’s enthusiasm had turned pity into praise. Truly, I had much to be thankful for. Yes, God. Thank you for the windows.

Having a blue day? Gratitude to the Lord is the best medicine for a broken heart.

Katherine Craddock is a professional writer and pastor’s wife who is the oldest of nine children and mother to one Kindergartner and two preschoolers of her own. She lives in Northern Virginia and is part of The King’s Chapel MOPS. Taken from www.MOPS.org