Thanking Outside The Bucks

by Seneca Moraleda-Puguan

Inflation is real. We can see it, feel it, taste it.

Every time we go out to replenish our supplies, dine in a restaurant or fill our car with gas, we couldn’t help but realize that prices have gone up. We pay more but we get so little.

It is disconcerting. As parents, anxious thoughts fill our minds.

Will our resources be enough to sustain us in the coming days? What are the things we need to do to cope with the rising prices? How about those who have no jobs, how will they survive?

With the economic crisis the world is facing right now, we have all the reasons to worry, fear and complain. But I believe that doing so may do more harm than good.

Just recently, our sermon series in church was entitled “Thinking Outside the Bucks.”

Our pastors reminded us of what God says about money and how to respond to the abundance or the lack thereof. Many times, it is written in the bible, “Do not worry.”

Hard as it may be, we are beseeched to not be anxious about anything, to not fear the future, to not worry about today. But can we?

I believe we can.

As a mother, I worry a lot. I worry about so many things: my children’s health, my husband’s safety, my family’s welfare and so much more.

The root of the word “worry” comes from the Old English word, “wrygan” which means “to strangle.”

Worry chokes. Fear cripples. When I worry, I am not able to do things properly. I become unproductive.

But when I choose to quiet myself, present my requests to my Heavenly Father and remind myself of who He is in my life and what He has done for me, the burdens are lifted and peace that transcends understanding envelops my heart.

I have learned that the antidote against worry and fear is worship and thanksgiving.

Yes, thanksgiving. Gratitude can dispel fear, complaining and anxiety.

When we see the many good things that we have in life, when we focus on the blessings that we receive every single day instead of what we lack, we become content.

The gift of a new day, the air that we breathe, the sun that rises, the roof on our heads, food on our tables, clothes that keep us warm, our spouses and children who love us, friends and relatives who care for us, the list goes on.

Every single day, God’s mercies are new. His steadfast love never ceases. Great is His faithfulness.

Life is hard. It really is. Life throws curve balls. It is inevitable in a world that is broken and dark. But to survive and flourish is dependent on how we respond to the challenges thrown our way.

Will we continue to let worry choke us or will we choose to worship and fix our eyes on the Giver of life? Shall we let complaints and bitterness fill our hearts or instead let thanksgiving overflow?

When the hardships of life overwhelm us and we can’t see anything good, let our beating hearts and breathing lungs remind us of the hope that we have in the goodness of our Father.

He, who did not withhold His only Son, will never leave us nor forsake us. He is good, always.

Let me share with you one of my favorite Bible verses that kept me going and fighting when the worries of life try to cripple me.

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing?

Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore, do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” – Matthew 6:25-34

May you and your family prosper and flourish at this difficult time. May your days be blessed by “THANKING outside the BUCKS”.