By Michael J. Kellis, Precision Orthopaedic Specialties, Inc.
Over the course of the last 29 years as a physician, I have been blessed with the ability to perform missions work in various parts of the world. It is on these trips when I realized how truly blessed we are.
Seeing children with diseases that are routinely cured in America always brought tears to my eyes; but, also helped me to understand how blessed my children are. Seeing children looking in trash cans for their food made me so grateful to have a daily meal with my family. Finding people sleeping on the cold, hard ground caused me to wake up every morning with words of gratitude for a good night’s sleep in my comfortable bed.
We must find gratitude in our everyday lives. Once we see how blessed we truly are, we seem to forget the negativity that surrounds our daily lives.
Did you wake up this morning? Thank you, God. Did your child smile this morning? Thank you, God. Did you help to make a difference today because of your kindness to someone? Thank you, God.
I sometimes hear patients say that I am grateful because I am blessed. My response is that I am blessed BECAUSE I am grateful.
We all have had difficulties in our lives, times when we feel alone, abandoned, sick and helpless. It is in those times when we should be the most grateful. That is where true faith lies—finding positive in the negativity of the world. God even said to us, “I am with you always.” All we need to do is believe and be grateful that our Lord will help us through any storm, any difficulty.
I have seen patients recover from horrendous diseases simply by thanking God for them. It is not the negativity that is thrown at us that matters, but how we handle it. God knows our hearts, he listens and responds in His time, not ours. By being grateful for everything, good and bad, I believe he feels our pain and responds accordingly. By becoming man, He clearly understood our emotions, our fears.
It is during this holiday season that we should be most grateful for everything; but most importantly, that God took on human form, was born in a lowly manger, experienced the negativity of the world, to save each and every one of us.
Be grateful for everything and know without a doubt that we are cradled in the hands of an ever–loving God.
