Chaplains Corner
By Jim Bull
Being Thankful
You know it seems the
more time goes by the more I realize how thankful I am for the things that I
have. It certainly is very easy to take things for granted, isn’t it? I don’t
know if it’s what our society teaches us or if it’s just human nature but
either way I am finding that by stopping each morning to give thanks for the
things that I do have makes life more enjoyable. I mean who wants to go through
life in a “state of want” all the time?
So let’s see what the
bible says about it:
1 THESSALONIANS 5:18 - Be thankful in all circumstances, for this
is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. (NLT)
This month’s inspiration
came not only from the bible but from long time MAMA racer Bryce Reeves. I have
a habit of asking people “whats up” and Bryce just happened to be standing near
me while I was taking pictures at Southfork and he said something like “God
first, then family, then mx” and that sparked our conversation and the basis
for this article.
It turns out about a year
ago Bryce suffered from a brain hemorrhage which led to a stroke and heart
failure which almost took his life. He ended up in the hospital for about a
week and a half and till this day still doesn’t have full use of the left side
of his body.
He told me that after
spending 41 years racing motocross and raising his kids at the track and
watching them grow up racing that there was no way he could stop, that he had
to find a way to stay on the bike. It was a year to the day after Bryce was
released from the hospital that he crawled back on the bike at Tomahawk earlier
this year.
He’s had to retrain his
body and learn to compensate with his right to make the left side of his body
work. Bryce told me he always believed in God but his health experience made
everything he thought he already believed come to reality. He believes that because of God that he is
still here racing and for that he is most thankful.
Bryce said if the race was to the first turn only that he could still
win every time.
So I’ll ask you, what are
you thankful for? Do you stop to think about it on a regular basis or do you
unconsciously go through your days looking for more? Please don’t misunderstand the point I’m trying to get across. I too am a believer in setting
goals and always striving to do your best - here I’m talking about the things
that we sometimes take for granted. Maybe it’s the things our family does for
us on a regular basis that we’ve come to expect or possibly a coworker that
pulls some extra weight for you on a day that you’re a little sluggish. Maybe
it’s the fact that we just woke up today and aren’t in pain and all our body
parts work.
I would ask you to think
about it and even to write it down. I’ve found a good little habit to form is
the minute you wake up to think about three things you are thankful for that
morning. Maybe start a journal and write it down every day but more importantly
if your thankful for someone in your life or the things that they do for you -
let them know about it, just don’t assume that they already know.
For more life tips or inspiration
see Jim Bull Talks on Facebook or subscribe to Jim Bull on You Tube.
No comments:
Post a Comment