“Count your blessings; name them one by one. Count your many blessings; see what God hath done!” Remember this song? For some of you, this song will now be stuck in your head all day…And that’s a good thing!

Yes, it is good and right to recount the many blessings of God upon our lives. So often we tend to zoom in on all the burdens of life and neglect to be thankful for the many, many blessings of life that God has graciously given to us. Below are just a few of the many blessings that God has dumped on my life:

1. My Salvation – Firmly rooted in God’s grace and freely bestowed upon me by my faith in God’s Son, Jesus Christ, I am beyond thankful for my salvation.
2. My Wife – The Bible is clear: “He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the LORD” (Proverbs 18:22). I definitely have a “good thing” in my beautiful and supportive wife, Heather Cotner.
3. My Children – I have four young blessings in Ann-Marie (almost 9 years old), David (7 years old), Aurora (3 years old), and Derrick (5 months old). These kids give me such joy with their zest for life and learning. I have learned so much from them already and just hope that they learn as much from me as I learn from them.
4. My Home – Every time I pull up to my house that sits at the intersection of 2^nd and C Ave, I smile. I just love the little yellow house that God has provided to me and my family. It has plenty of space for all of us, keeps us warm in the winter, and has a wonderful front porch for those beautiful summertime evenings. What a blessing it is to own our own home!
5. My Church – It is such a wonderful, joyful burden to be the Lead Pastor of Prairie Flower Baptist Church. My Associate Pastor, Tim O’Tool, is a joy to work beside and has proven himself to be a creative and stable leader. My Deacons are also some of the godliest and most hardworking men that I know, and I am incredibly grateful to serve alongside each of them. I’m also thankful for my Praise Team as they always work so hard Sunday after Sunday and really encourage our congregation to sing to the Lord with gusto. I’m also so incredibly grateful for all of the many wonderful volunteers that faithfully serve in our Nursery, Sunday School, Children’s Church, Growth Groups, Outfitters, and K4T…I’m just so incredibly grateful for my Prairie Flower Baptist Church family!

Writing this list was surprisingly refreshing…even therapeutic. How good it was to sit, reflect, and praise my King for all of the blessings He has given to me. Now, here’s your homework assignment: List the blessings that God has given you. Then, spend time in prayer, thanking Him for His many, many blessings upon your life. Yes, “count your blessings; name them one by one. Count your many blessings; see what God hath done!”