In our latest Wednesday’s devotional time Santy and I sang, “All the Way My Savior Leads Me,” a song written by Fanny Crosby.  And I also shared with you how the song came about.  Fanny Crosby was an exceptional woman; despite her blindness she went on to write over three thousand hymns, many of those continue to bless us even to this day.  Like Abel, she, too, died but still speaks to us.

Fanny Crosby was not born blind; she became blind at 6 months of age when the doctor gave her wrong medication.  Nonetheless, she never became bitter and immolated; early on in life she chose to walk the positive path of life.  Listen to a poem she wrote at age 8, “O what a happy soul I am! / Although I cannot see / I am resolved that in this world / Contented I will be / How many blessings I enjoy / That other people don’t! / To weep and sigh because I am blind / I cannot, and I won’t.”  She chose to be content and grateful.

To be content is to say, “Enough.”  Whatever lot God has assigned us, we accept it; and we do not ask for more, much less complain about it.  However, to be content actually begins with our saying, “Enough” to our impulse to go for more.  We say, “enough” even though we still want more and can get more.  This is contentment.

To be grateful is to say, “Not enough.”  Whatever it is we do for and give to God is not enough to pay Him back because He always gives us more than we have hoped for.  In other words, to be grateful begins with our saying, “Not enough” to our impulse to brag about how good we are and how deserving we are to receive God’s grace.

To be content and to be grateful are characteristics of those who are happy with what they have and appreciate what they can do.

Pastor Paul