Please welcome Marietta Taylor

Martha, thanks for hosting me today! You're probably aware that there are still many families affected by unemployment. I wanted to offer to your readers an excerpt from my devotional book, Surviving Unemployment Devotions To Go. Each devotion in the book also has an “action page”.  The excerpt below is an action page that focuses on finding blessings during unemployment. Enjoy!

No More Pity Party

During unemployment, it’s easy to throw yourself a pity party. It’s just too tempting to wallow in your anger, fear, disbelief or whatever other emotion you feel. But it doesn’t change a thing. I know, because

my husband and I did all those things. Those negative emotions, like anger, left us both feeling more miserable than before.

One way to avoid this is to focus on your blessings. It is not easy in the beginning but as you keep throwing God a praise party, pity parties are less likely to show up. So, you’re probably wondering how to go about doing something you probably do not feel like doing. It’s actually fairly simple.

One simple thing to do is to spend most of your prayer time on thanksgiving. “What,” you ask, “is there to be thankful for?“ What about unemployment benefits, severance packages, food on the table, clothes to wear, friends and family or the breath you just took? All of these are noble candidates. If needed, write them out on a list that you can refer to if you get stuck.

Perhaps your family wants to institute a thankfulness day, such as Thankful Tuesday or Thursday. Display a notebook in a commonly “traveled” area of the house. Let family members record their thanks for that day. Everyone can read the other entries and perhaps even discuss them later.

For a more ongoing focus, use a thankful jar. As someone thinks of something they are grateful for, have them write it on a slip of paper and place it in the jar. When the jar is full, take one evening and read through them, offering praise to God for what is written on each slip of paper. You will feel and be so blessed.

Question for readers: Is there anything specific you do to keep your blessings in your sight?

Thank you so much  for allowing me to share. You can connect with me in the following ways:

Website: www.mariettataylor.net

Personal Blog: www.marismorningromm.blogspot.com

Twitter: www.twitter.com/raleighgirl

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/marietta.taylor2

Buy my book:

Paper:

http://shop.theextremediva.com/Surviving-Unemployment-Devotions-to-Go-6139.htm

Kindle Edition:

http://www.amazon.com/Surviving-Unemployment-Devotions-Go-ebook/dp/B004T3FPUE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1301968884&sr=1-1