It’s Thanksgiving morning, and we may feel more thankful this year than ever before. We started our week at the hospital, thinking something may have been wrong with Bowen. On top of having a cold and an ear infection, our pulse oximeter was showing us that his blood oxygen levels were low. However, once we arrived in Ann Arbor it was the same story as the last time we drove him up there out of concern. We found ourselves sitting in the doctors office with a smiling, laughing baby who, besides having half a heart, was perfectly fine. We are so thankful!

So I’m thinking of all that I’m thankful for today big and small. I mean, Sarah and I woke up in our warm house, we had options for breakfast, hit a button on a machine that makes our coffee. We snuggled under a blanket on our comfy couch with three happy kids and watched movies. I gave my son a warm bath and washed over a scar that a surgeon was paid handsomely to stitch up after fixing his broken heart; and now, I’m typing a post on my smart phone to send into the world of people with computers that are run on electricity and internet connections.

At this point, a few of you maybe thinking, “Man, this is starting to sound a little shallow right now.” Truth is, that stuff is indeed shallow in depth compared to “the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.” The deepest longings for happiness that God has placed inside of me can be satisfied by nothing else. Today I asked myself the question…what if, like so many other families we know, we didn’t get the joy of having Bowen with us this year? Where would my hope and happiness come from? It could only be in the promise that one day everything broken would be made new. Big family or no family, full stomach or empty, happy heart or a sad one, there is a promise of something better…something perfect.

My wish is that you enjoy your day, eat good food, and are able to give much thanks. As part of my Thanksgiving, I want to share something with you that lifted my heart yesterday; something I listened to while raking the gorgeous fall leaves. It’s a message of hope by Timothy Keller. If you have time this week, give it a listen. If you feel hopeless today, then it’s meant for you now. It’s titled The New Heavens and New Earth and you can find it here.