We deserve nothing from anybody, especially from God, because of our sin. Yet by grace God gives us so many blessings.

God saw us sinners and had mercy on us even though we don't deserve it. Have you ever really thought how amazing that is? If someone did something to anger you, would you do something nice to them? Probably not, but this is what makes God so great. He gave us his Son to die for us. Shouldn't we appreciate that? Shouldn't we also appreciate all the other blessings God has given us? The answer is obviously yes.

As a Lutheran, I appreciate that God chose me from eternity to be saved. I didn't deserve to be saved, but God showed his grace to me and now I want to appreciate what he did by praising him.

But God didn't just create faith in me to make me saved; he worked through people on earth. God gave me parents, teachers, friends, and all sorts of people who taught me God's Word and supported me in my faith. Without them I would never had even known about God or believed in him, and for that I am thankful to God. Also I appreciate that I can go to these people for help in hard times and know that they will give me support because they share the same faith.

God has also blessed me with a Lutheran education all of my life. I'm thankful to God and the believers who thought Lutheran schools were important. Those schools help build a good foundation for my faith and everyone else's. I especially appreciate that I can go to school every day and talk about my faith with my peers without being embarrassed. Being constantly surrounded by fellow Lutherans is very encouraging for my faith and my love for Christ. Throughout my school life, I have studied a ton of memory work. I may not have liked to memorize all those words, but I appreciate that my teachers made me do it because now those passages will be with me for the rest of my life.

One of the most encouraging things about being a Lutheran is prayer. Whenever I'm feeling sad, angry, or confused, I can go to God for help anytime I want. I know he will hear me. If I feel guilty, God forgives me. If I'm worried about something, God will be there for me.  That blessing is reassuring and is something that isn't appreciated too often. What a comfort it is to know that the almighty God is looking out for me and will listen to me!

One final thing I appreciate is fellowship in church. Every week I have fellow Lutherans sharing their faith with me and therefore encouraging me in my faith and supporting what I believe. Communion is especially important because other Lutherans are saying that they believe that Christ died for us and forgave us. Without fellowship, we seem to stand alone in our beliefs. This is why fellowship is so important for our faith.