AN ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE: DONT FORGET A SINGLE BLESSING! – PART 3! “O my soul, bless God. From head to toe, I’ll bless His holy name! O my soul, bless God, DONT FORGET A SINGLE BLESSING!” – Psalm 103:1-2 Message Bible.
Making it to the last week of the year is not our own making but by the mercy of God for He tells Moses, I will show mercy to whom I will show mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then, it does not depend on human will or effort but on God who shows mercy. (Romans 9:15-16 Christian Standard Bible).
If you’ve ever hummed the song “Count Your Blessings, Name Them One by One,” you’ve unknowingly sung the testimony of a man who once forgot to count his own. Count Your Blessings is a hymn written in 1897 by Johnson Oatman, Jr. He was born on April 21, 1856, in Lumberton, New Jersey to Johnson and Rachel Oatman.
Johnson wasn’t your typical hymn-writer. He wasn’t even a full-time musician. By day, he managed his father’s small mercantile business and by night, he preached in small churches, usually to congregations that were half-asleep after a long workday.
His father, a gifted singer, was well-known for his booming baritone voice, while Johnson’s own voice could barely scare a chicken off the porch. His merchant father was the “best singer in town” although the young Johnson did not possess his father’s talent. The younger Johnson looked up to his father, who fostered his great love of church music at such an early age.
Once, after trying to join a church choir and being politely told to “stick to the sermon,” Johnson went home, looked in the mirror, and said, “Well, Lord, at least I make a joyful noise — even if it’s not tuneful.” In the winter of 1897, everything seemed to fall apart. Business slowed. His sermons felt flat. His bills piled up. He caught a bad cold that kept him home for weeks.
One cold evening, He sat by the fire, reading Psalm 103: “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.” He chuckled and muttered, “Forget not? Lord, at this rate, I’ve forgotten more blessings than I can remember!”
Just then, his wife, full of wit and wisdom, handed him a pen and paper and said, “If you’ve forgotten them, then start writing them down! “Johnson took her advice. He began scribbling blessings one by one:
Still alive.
Still breathing.
Still have a wife who brings tea instead of trouble.
Still have a God who hasn’t given up on me.
Before long, the list became a song. Line by line, he turned his gratitude list into lyrics:
“Count your blessings, name them one by one, Count your blessings, see what God has done…”
When he finished, he laughed and said, “Well, Lord, if this doesn’t lift my spirit, I’ll send it to someone who can sing it better than me!” He did — and within a year, Count Your Blessings was published and sung around the world. What began as one man’s moment of self-pity became a global anthem of thanksgiving.
Johnson Oatman Jr. went on to write over 5,000 hymns, but Count Your Blessings remained his most beloved. That year, the man who once felt small discovered a big truth — that gratitude magnifies God’s goodness and multiplies joy.
As we stand at the close of another year, you’ve had moments like Johnson Oatman Jr. when life felt heavy, hope seemed dim, and gratitude looked like work. The truth is there is so much more to be thankful for when we look at things with the lens of gratitude and if you have lost anything, God is the reason you have not lost everything. Gratitude is not a gift that we get but a choice that we make. And this choice is not automatic, it is intentional!
Psalm 103:2 kindly remind us: “O my soul, bless God, DON`T FORGET A SINGLE BLESSING!” (Message Bible). Let gratitude forever remain your attitude and DON’T FORGET A SINGLE BLESSING!
