Do you take the time?

How many of us pray for safety while driving, healing from sickness, guidance while shopping, for the right words to say at the right time, for salvation for an unsaved acquaintance? The list goes on and on, some "major" some "mundane". Prayer is, or should be, a normal part of a Christian's life. It should be as easy as breathing. Maybe we could say it should be done as often as breathing.

But how many times do we stop and truly thank the Lord for answered prayers? Oh, we give glory and praise to God when a soul is saved and give their life to Christ. We thank Him and praise Him when He does "great and mighty" things (because it seems easier to spot how He works in the "big" things), but do we thank the Lord when we step out of our car after a drive (long or short) for the safety He gave us on the road? Do we thank the Lord for giving us the wisdom to buy the things we needed (and sometimes the things we wanted) while out shopping? Do we take the time to thank Him, and truly mean it, for the "small and insignificant" things?

God loves to hear our prayers, our praise ... our thankfulness! No matter how small the request seemed when prayed did you take the time to thank Him for how He answered it? And not just if He answered the prayer the way we thought it should be answered. Do we thank Him when things don't work out the way we thought they should? Are we giving thanks for everything at all times?

What about those times when He does things that we never prayed for? What about when He lovingly grants those desires that we never dared to pray? What about when He does something that we never would have even thought of? Do we thank Him for those things, too?

A little assignment ... I don't expect reports back ... just for yourself ... how often do you find yourself thanking God throughout the day? Do you thank Him when things turn out "right"? Do you thank Him when things don't go as planned? Do you thank Him for the "little" things as well as the "big" things? Do you thank Him for those things you never thought of, or prayed for? Just a little something to think on.