Being Thankful for Being Better Off Than Many People Around the World

I have an email that was sent to me a while back. It says that "If you woke up this morning with more health than illness, you are more blessed than the six million who won’t make it through the week.

If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation, you are ahead of 500 million people in the world.

If you can attend a church service without fear of persecution, arrest, torture or death, you are more blessed than 3 billion people in the world.

If you have food in the fridge, clothes on your back, a roof over your head, and a place to sleep, you are richer than 75% of the world.

If you have money in the bank, money in your wallet, and spare change in a dish someplace, you are among the top 8% of the world’s wealthy."

That’s something to think about as we celebrate Thanksgiving. I know that life’s not easy. Paul says in Acts 14:22 that we must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God.” But I also know that we are truly blessed.

From a sermon by Marc Axelrod, What to Do When You Don’t Feel Like Praising God, 11/15/2009