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Thursday night, before midnight, my wife, two daughters and myself were rudely awakened when our apartment complex started shaking.  I’m no stranger to earthquakes since I have lived many years in earthquake prone California and Southern Mexico.  I told my wife that we were having an earthquake.  We have small ones every month or two an it has never been a big deal.  This one was a big deal!  It kept getting stronger and rocking our house more and more.  My daughters, Sally and Kelly, were afraid, especially Sally who sleeps on the top bunk.  She made it out of her bed and we all huddled in what I thought was the safest part of the house while tea cups rattled and my wife’s art work tumbled from a shelf onto the floor.  Finally, after about a minute it was over.  The house stopped shaking, but we were all shaking from the shock of what turned out to be an 8.4 earthquake.

Our house is an apartment that is part of a complex  located in Oaxaca, Mexico, where dozens of people died as a result of the earthquake.  After the temblor I walked around our building  to look for damage.  There was none.  We live at a mission that cares for needy children and are grateful to God that nobody was hurt and there was no damage to the buildings to speak of.  Unfortunately, other parts of Mexico suffered much damage as the photos show.

I am the gardener here at the FFHM mission.  It is a rather large property and I am constantly battling weeds.  I use two lawnmowers, a weed-whacker and a lawn tractor in my struggle against unwanted plants.  There are tons of thorns here that puncture tires, especially the lawn tractor tires.  Fortunately there is a product that I spray into the tires that seals the punctures.  The directions say that the can must be shaken thoroughly for the product to work properly.

Sometimes I think that I need to be shaken thoroughly for me to function properly.  The earthquake did a good job of that.  The Bible talks about the importance of being thankful:

Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.  Colossians 3:17

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.                         1 Thessalonians 5:18

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.  Philippians 4:6,7

In life we tend to get complacent, apathetic and take a lot of things for granted.  Sometimes God has to shake us up in one way or another to remind us of all the good things we have, and to express our thanks to Him and to others who bless our lives.  We can always find things to complain about or dream about how much better things could be.  God wants our vision focused on Him.  He wants us think about how much He loves us and wants us to be happy, and all the good things He has given us toward that end.

Instead of complaining about what I don’t have, I am full of gratitude for what I do have – citizenship in God’s Happy Kingdom, a loving wife and two super daughters, and fabulous parents who are always there for us.  I try to have an attitude of gratitude, but sometimes I need to get all shook up to really appreciate what I have.