By Betsy Ore Glass

Be very careful when you go to worship God. It is better to listen to God than to give sacrifices like fools. Fools often do bad things, and they don’t even know it. – Ecclesiastes 5:1

If you were blessed enough to enjoy a Thanksgiving feast like I did, our waistlines may be a bit snug! We count ourselves blessed, including the extra pounds!! Priorities and circumstances make the days far too rare when families can all be together in celebration. Maybe your family was spread out this year and couldn’t be together, but hopefully phone calls and all the modern technology helped you to connect. Holidays are not always joyous for some people for many reasons, and we should take note of how we can be a blessing, if possible. But regardless of where we are and what we do, we could reflect and remember to cherish the memories we have, both past and present.

A recent cherished memory is one with my grandson when we were spending some special time together. I asked him what was the best part of Christmas, in his opinion. He thought a moment and said, “You might think I would say presents but that isn’t true . . . it is about celebrating Jesus’ birthday.”  Well my heart sang and I beamed with joy, knowing my talks with him appeared to be taking root.  But then again, I considered maybe he could be buttering up his gullible Gigi, to say what I wanted to hear. I hope not! Children can add such flavor and personality to a situation when they have a goal they are trying to achieve! It may be wise for us to remember in the next 30 days kids may tell us what we want to hear in hopes it could increase the Christmas morning bounty!

When we want something really badly, we can be children ourselves, and go to the throne and promise God anything and everything, if he will just fix our problem. Heal us. Restore us. Save us. Prosper us. Please God Please, is our cry. We are telling Him what we think He wants to hear. It is easy to promise that we will never miss a Sunday in church, that we will be nice to that annoying neighbor, we will start tithing and so on. We must humor God at times I think. In the end, God knows our heart at all times.  He loves us. Never doubt that. I see God’s Hand in my own life day after day. Especially at a time when I feel out of control regarding some of my own issues. He in control. He is Good. He is God. He is worthy of our trust to decide what is best for us. Whatever may be on your heart, walk it to the throne and lay it before Him. Surrender it and then trust Him.

Betsy Ore Glass has long-standing ties to the Outer Banks. From Virginia Beach, her family bought a vacation cottage in the 60s and her love of the area began. Later in the 90s, Betsy and her husband bought a weekend cottage and introduced the area to their children. Then Betsy’s parents retired to KDH where the family gathered often. Reach her at betsyglass1@gmail.com or read additional Reflections at www.betsyoreglass.com.

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