Count your blessings - A lesson in thread journalling

The Salvation Army has a brilliant song book that is packed full of poetry about life, faith, God and everything in between. One of my favourite songs and one which I still regularly refer to is the song called Count your blessings, written by Johnson Oatman jr in 1897 the words say:

• When upon life’s billows you are tempest-tossed,
  When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
  Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
  And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.

• 
  

• Refrain:

• Count your blessings, name them one by one,

• Count your blessings, see what God has done!
  Count your blessings, name them one by one,
  And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.

• 
  

• Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
  Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
  Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
  And you will keep singing as the days go by.

• 
  

• So, amid the conflict whether great or small,
  Do not be discouraged, God is over all;
  Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
  Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.

• 
  

 Recently after going through a challenging time physically I was in a place where I was struggling mentally too. The recovery from surgery was taking a lot longer than I had expected and it felt a little like my life was on hold. In the middle of this difficult time, I saw an advert for a free craft course doing something called thread journaling and I decided to give it a go.

The course was held in one of my favourite Macclesfield cafes and although I was very tentative going in, it was soon forgotten as the leader Steph explained all about her journey to thread journaling and how it had helped her when she was in a challenging season. (She has a fab site here: Evans Sent )

If you have never heard of thread journaling, it is a way to record moments and memories using sewing. They are a brilliant way of representing a moment in time, often moments that might otherwise be forgotten. Some people will add to their thread journal daily, others may do it a little more ad hoc. 

As I sat in my first thread journaling class, the words of count your blessings began running through my mind. The first verse seemed rather apt for me and it soon gave me an idea. I decided rather than simply fill my thread journal with memories I would fill them with blessings. It was a simple and yet powerful way to count my blessings. 

As I have been regularly adding to my thread journal, I have discovered so much about myself and God. In regularly working on my thread journal, I have developed a visual reminder of God's faithfulness in the past few months. Some of the pieces may represent something simple like a yummy stack of pancakes, while others represent poignant and life changing moments. It is such a beautiful way to count the blessings that have already come my way. 

In the process of recording the blessings I have experienced I have also found that the act of sewing has given me extra time and space to thank God for the things he has given. It has given me the opportunity to spend more time in God’s presence and has helped me to develop my attitude of gratitude.

Counting my blessings through thread journaling has also encouraged me to actively look for blessings. In moments of joy or times when God comes close, I have begun to think of my thread journal and how I might record the memory. It then, in turn, reminds me that the moment is a blessing from God. 

Through all of this too God has been talking to me about the joy of using your creativity to worship God, the importance of community (I have met the most wonderful group of women) and about every part of our life being used for God’s glory….Maybe you might hear a little bit more about that soon!

God gives us so many blessings, lamentations says: 

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness!

When we take time to count our blessings we are reminded of God’s unfailing love. It doesn't matter how you do it, the important thing is that you do it. The wonderful thing about the song ‘Count your blessings’ was that the writer was the son of a gifted singer and it took him a long time to use his own musical talent as he felt he wasn’t good enough. If Johnson Oatman jr had made the choice not to use his gifts and skills we wouldn’t have the song count your blessings. I encourage you to think about how you might use your creativity to establish an attitude of gratitude and count your blessings.