It is important for us to take a periodic if not daily spiritual inventory. Where do we stand with the Lord? Are we living the type of life that He would desire us to live? Are we confessing all of our known sin? Are we endeavoring to stay in His word?

An important part of this spiritual inventory process is the counting of our blessings. Even when our lives appear to be in total disarray, our Holy, Triune God is blessing us. If all of our breaks are bad ones, we need to be mindful that blessings are being poured out on us. And, when our futures look so bright that we need to wear sunglasses, we should not forget it is because of the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, leading and guiding us.

More and more, I am remembering to count my blessings and to be ever thankful for them. As I write this, that old Mac Davis tune is playing in my head: You've got to stop, and smell the roses. You've got to count your many blessings every day. You're gonna find your way to Heaven, is a rough and rocky road, if you don't stop and smell the roses along the way. Thank you, Mac, for that little reminder. Thank you, Jesus, for blessing me with a free play of that song on my mental jukebox. These are blessings to be counted!

This writer is going to be brutally honest and somewhat revealing: The year 2009 has been a bad one -- perhaps the worst of my life. I've been divorced. I no longer live with my daughter and I miss her terribly. I am her Christian mentor, and it has now become increasingly difficult for me to do that job. Jim's Jerseys, the business that I've run since 1999, is failing and generating precious little income. There are currently no prospects and while panning for gold I am only coming up with gravel.

Am I lonely? Ah, you don't know the half of it.

People love my music: they are playing my songs and raving about them. But, these same folks are not purchasing the CD's and MP3's. People claim that I am an energetic and engaging live performer and concert evangelist, but no one will book Jim Yackel and Company for concerts. The recording sessions for the So Very Soon full-length CD project seem to be cursed -- even after we've recovered from the "Zoom" incident. Fortunately, Mike and I have been able to release the five song So Very Soon E.P.

Now, I am not inviting you to a pity party, nor am I efforting to solicit your sympathies. If you'd like to pray for me that would be great -- but it seems lately the more that people pray for me the worse things get.

Instead of granting Satan his wish for me, which would be to give up and succumb to depression and despair, I am turning the tables. Life stinks right now, but I believe that this is only a season. So, instead, I am counting my blessings:

God has blessed me with a place to live. God has blessed me with clothes to wear and some food to eat. As of now, I have a car to drive and a phone. I have a computer and a guitar. My roommate is likewise going through a very difficult time, and he'd be the first to tell you that I am making a difference in his life. He credits me with saving his life, but that is above my pay grade. I do the best I can to be his Christian mentor, with the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

God has blessed me with more inspiration this year than any year in recent memory -- in the form of songs, short stories, and comedy video clips. God has blessed me with Mike Case, an unlikely and unexpected friend who has joined forces with me to make all of these many endeavors take shape. Of course, all work is progressing slowly and seems to be impeded -- like the So Very Soon sessions are -- but we continue to effort to make our music, video, and television project move forward to bring glory to our Lord and Savior.

God has blessed me with an amazing sense of humor. There are many who believe that I should be a comedian. Well, that's not something that I desire to do on a full-time basis, but my wacky (and clean) humor will manifest itself in the YackelTV sketches. I will happily make a fool of myself if it will make you laugh. As a pretty nurse once told me, laughter is the best medicine, and she is so right.

God has blessed me with a strong mind and body. He has blessed me with an amazing capacity to love -- and love often leads to pain. When the hurt comes, God blesses me with healing. I believe that my divorce had to happen -- and I'm glad that it did -- and in that my ex-wife has become my friend. While I suffer the pain of not seeing my daughter more than a couple of times of week, my time with her has become high quality, and that is a blessing.

There is more to this tale, but I feel led to bring it to a close here. I am blessed that you have just invested a couple minutes of your time to read it. While I see nothing but desert sand today, I know that a shining city waits on a distant hill. My camel and I are trudging in the direction of that city, and we are finding an oasis here and there to keep us hydrated.

Thank you, Lord, for every oasis -- for they are such wonderful blessings and they always appear right on time.