Lessons from a Thankful Heart

Thanksgiving has always been a time of reflection for me. This year, I realized how much I have to be thankful for. It's been a year since my last knee surgery and everything has been successful so far. I have taken time over the last several days and today to look back on those long days and months after the surgery. I truly don’t know how I made it through. I have never experienced such pain or such love as I did throughout this process. God has a way of teaching us things that we don't necessarily want to learn. I did not enjoy it and I hope to never go through something like this again; however, because of His love and mercy, I am able to sit here and say I am truly thankful for this list of things He taught me over the last year.
  1. God’s grace is sufficient
  2. I am not in control
  3. I am not alone
  4. Even the expected can be unexpected
  5. You never do run out of tears, believe me, I know
  6. I do not have an “end of the rope”
  7. There is always a little bit of strength left
  8. Doctors really do know what they’re doing
  9. The pain can always get worse
  10. 48 staples is an incredibly high number to dig out of one leg
  11. My mother is the strongest person I know and I don’t deserve her
  12. My family are the most forgiving and understanding people I know
  13. No matter how old you are, nights can still be dark and scary
  14. Toddler/baby hugs and kisses really do make everything better
  15. Toddler yelling and crying makes everything so much worse
  16. Traditions are overrated, but family is not
  17. I am blessed with incredibly supportive friends
  18. Throwing up while being unable to get up is miserable
  19. Wheelchairs, hills, and snow are a terrifying combination
  20. A good Hallmark Christmas movie helps the pain
  21. There is always hope
  22. Never underestimate the power of prayer
  23. Never underestimate the power of a mother praying
  24. Don’t take your legs and ability to walk for granted
  25. Sponge baths should not be underestimated
  26. Showers are not something to be taken for granted
  27. Walkers and portable toilets are not just for the elderly
  28. Using a portable toilet in your living room is just as awful as it sounds
  29. Always check the battery on the electric wheelchair cart at the grocery store
  30. Chick-Fil-A nuggets and Dr. Pepper soothe the stomach and the soul
  31. There is light at the end of the tunnel
  32. This pain is not eternal
  33. Suffering brings endurance
  34. Pain builds empathy
  35. We are not meant to walk, run, crutch, or wheelchair alone
  36. Building community before a crisis hits is so incredibly important
  37. Vulnerability is essential to reaching others with our stories
  38. Stubbornness is a blessing when you have to push through the pain to continue life
  39. Stubbornness is a curse when someone is trying to help
  40. Never underestimate yourself
  41. You are never too good, too experienced, or too highly positioned to help someone in need
  42. Holding doors is a simple kindness that cannot be overestimated
  43. Every stranger with a matching scar, brace, crutches, or wheelchair is an instant friend
  44. God will use the most random stranger to give you a glimpse of His love
  45. Growth is meant to be shared
  46. God is faithful through the good and the bad
  47. God gives more grace

"But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong."
II Corinthians 12:9-10

Keep an eye out next week for the entire story of my surgery!
~Rachel

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