More

I've heard it said that "The good life exists only when you stop wanting a better one." And the good life "is the condition of savoring what is rather than longing for what might be." This is so convicting to me, for, like so many of us, I am never quite satisfied. I could and should be a better wife and a better mother. I come up way short when it comes to organization and clutter control! I long to be a better cook, a more fun mom, a more encouraging wife, a more involved friend, a more active volunteer, a more efficient money manager (i.e. stop spending money!). And, sadly, we can be dissatisfied with those God has placed in our lives: we long for our children to make better grades and wiser decisions or our husbands to make more money or give us more affection or whatever we perceive they are lacking (because it is all about us). We itch for more time, more money, more respect, more stuff, more youth, more meaning and on and on.

And lost in the endless shuffle of always wanting more is joy and gratitude for what is and what we do have. As I once heard Chuck Swindoll comment, "A man never earns enough. A woman is never beautiful enough. Clothes are never new enough. The house is never furnished enough. The food is never fancy enough." He declared that our salvation "lies in stepping off the escalator and saying, 'Enough! What I have will do. What I make of it is up to me.'"

I think back to our brief few days in the mountains a few weeks ago. What perfect happiness and contentment! Just savoring the beauty all around me, the quiet, the cool air, the clear night sky. And relishing the joy of spending time with 3 of my children--watching them, talking, laughing, listening to them. Somehow all the "more" that I thought I needed, all the gaps and deficiencies that rob me of joy and peace, they were all obliterated in those hours of blissful contentment. How often do we miss the extravagant blessings of our family, our health, our friends, our home and nation because of their dailyness. Have I thanked God today that I could talk with my daughters or drive my sons to the golf course? How about walking the dog or listening to music or washing the dishes? I could do none of these things if I had no children or could not speak or hear or if my legs did not work. If I had no dishes or food, then I'd never need to wash a plate.

Forgive me Lord for my ingratitude! I recently began reading the beautiful book, One Thousand Gifts, and these words really struck me: "From all our beginnings, we keep reliving the Garden story. Satan, he wanted more. More power, more glory. Ultimately, in his essence, satan is an ingrate. And he sinks his venom into the heart of Eden. Satan's sin becomes the first sin of all humanity: the sin of ingratitude. Adam and Eve are simply, painfully, ungrateful for what God gave. Isn't that the catalyst of all my sin? Our fall was, has always been, and always will be, that we aren't satisfied in God and what He gives. We hunger for something more, something other." Amen!

Lord, help me to get off the "more" escalator and step into gratitude for who You are and what You have done. Help me to live in the "precious present," fully alive, fully grateful, fully there. Help me to love with abandon and grace... and, again, gratitude. For, as George Herbert wrote so long ago, "Thou, who has given us so much, mercifully grant us one more thing--a grateful heart." And to God, the Gracious Giver, be all the glory.