Being Thankful

As we prepare for the Thanksgiving season, I believe that it is important to reflect on what it means to be thankful and the ways in which we can express our thankfulness to God.

 

To be thankful is to appreciate the many blessings that you have in your life while refusing to focus on what you do not have.  To be thankful is to be joyful where you are, and to decide against being mournful over where you are not.

 

You know…being unthankful is like little kids who ignore the fact that their parents just took them to buy ice cream, but are unhappy because their parents told them that they could not eat the ice cream in the living room.  Don’t you realize that daddy just bought you the ice cream that is in your hand?  If you focused on that, you would realize the immense joy that is literally at your fingertips.

 

To be thankful is to say thank you for ice cream dad, I don’t need the living room in order to be happy at this moment.  I have the most important piece of the equation.

 

Likewise, we have life today.  For many of us, we have a roof over our head, we have family, we have resources, and we have LOVE in our lives.  We have Love to give and we have love to receive.  Let’s be thankful for that today, and recapture our joy.  Because when we are thankful, we re-discover our joy and that's what it's about.

 

In addition to this…I believe that we should also think of those who do not have.  Jesus is constantly redirecting us towards the suffering and the needs of others.  Not to simply acknowledge them, but Jesus wants us to put on their shoes and empathize with their realities.  Therefore, it is not enough to simply be thankful for what we have.  We should give others something to be thankful for. 

 

To be thankful is to be joyful, and when you are full of joy, you are the light of the world, and we are called to be the light of the world.

 

Let’s be thankful this holiday season, and spread our joy at home and in our communities.

 

Challenge

 

Write down at least ten (10) things that you are thankful for, and share it with each other.  Share it with your spouse, your children, your friends, or your co-workers.  Invite others into your thankfulness circle and spread more joy today.