I’ll be 59 in a few days and I’ve been thinking about how to live out the last year of my 50’s. That’s another post, but a part of what I’ve learned in 58 years is that it’s not always easy to be thankful. I don’t know how many times the Bible tells us that we should be thankful, but it seems like a continual reminder. My instinct is that is because we need to be reminded. I’ll be posting a reflection of Psalm 100 on my other Substack this coming Sunday.
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As for today, what do I post about Thanksgiving? I could encourage us to always search for ways to be thankful, no matter the circumstance. I think it’s good when people write down their blessings so that they can know that they far outweigh their troubles. As many have shared, when we are touched by the hardships of those who have far less or who suffer far more, we can appreciate our blessings and offer help and hope. I could forage up some great Thanksgiving quotes.
Gratitude is the inward feeling of kindness received. Thankfulness is the natural impulse to express that feeling. Thanksgiving is the following of that impulse. - Henry Van Dyke
That’s a good one. These are the reflections we read at Thanksgiving time. So what’s left to say about Thanksgiving? I’m not sure there’s so much left to say about it, but I do have a question. Do you ever get around to doing it?
It is an honest question. We can all agree that we should practice gratitude but do we ever actually do it? Or is it simply the serendipity of over-abundance? Are we only thankful when we are on the sensory overload of big tables of food, big crowds of family, and big football games on big televisions? Is our ‘Thanksgiving’ a prayer before the meal? Or (the sometimes awkward) going around the table to tell what it is for which we are thankful?
My big Thanksgiving encouragement to you is to find some quiet time (sometimes hard to come by on a family-gathering holiday) either on Thanksgiving Day or someday nearby. If you are a Christian, ask God to help you be aware of the multiple blessings you enjoy each day. Thank Him for the things we often take for granted. You turn a knob and hot clean water comes out. When you are uncomfortable you can turn a dial and warm or cool air comes out of vents into your home. A home like yours … how many people in the world can only dream of a home like yours? More than making a list or just reciting the typical things for which we are grateful, I encourage you to move through your day, noting all the things that make your life what it is.
Although that’s a great thing to do, I don’t think that can be the end of it. We don’t want to wait until next November to take some time to express gratitude. I encourage you to try to spend a specific time taking stock of your life in grateful prayer at least once a month. When you become accustomed to that, what about once a week?
The truth is that if we are only expressing our gratitude once a year, we’re not truly grateful. We just feel obligated.
So, let Thanksgiving speak to your heart. And to do that, take some quiet time specifically for that. Don't think of it as a hardship. When we truly give thanks…
*We are happier because we know how blessed we truly are.
*We are stronger because we grow in our faith in a Father who provides so well.
*We work harder because we perceive that God works through our efforts.
*We are more compassionate towards those who have less.
*We are proactive in serving because we live from a positive baseline of gratitude.
*We experience a greater sense of well-being and health due to the focus of our thinking.
*We are moved to express gratitude more often because of the joy it produces.
*We are able to forgive, live above strife, and overcome grudges.
*We are set free from the life that is anchored in hate and vengeance. Instead, we enjoy grace and the freedom to love even those that make it difficult.
Psalm 100, New Living translation
Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.
Happy Thanksgiving, friends. And thanks for reading. I would appreciate you liking this post and sharing it - if you feel moved to do so. Of course, subscribing would be great! It would help me. But either way, I am thankful for you. Your reading encourages me to write.
Gratefully,
John