It is November and it is a time to be thankful for both the joy and the challenges of life. A time to find God in every minute of my day and to be thankful that I am alive, that my struggles are nothing compared to those of many people who are suffering with food insecurity, homelessness, living in a devastated homeland, or any number of other challenges the world’s people experience, But it’s more than that. No matter what we are going through, there really is a lot to be thankful for if we can open our eyes to see it.
Scripture says in Psalm 118:1: “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, his love endures forever.” That is one of my favorite verses. What does it mean to truly believe that the Lord is good? If God is truly good, what do we have to worry about because God is with us. In 1 Thessalonians 5:18 scripture says: “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”. Giving thanks in all circumstances. I have wondered what that actually means. I also think about and wonder how I can live this out in my daily life. And lastly Philippians 4:6 that says: "Be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” It feels like the way to know the peace of God, and the presence of God is to be anxious for nothing & to trust in God, always thanking God for everything. Being thankful, and telling God about how thankful we are for everything is important and it has an immense impact on the way you lead your life and the attitudes and energy you have in life. At least that has been true for me.
There are many ways to practice being grateful. I have an ”always-thankful-for“ list of things that I try to read through at least once a week. Things like: thank You Lord for the gift of this day. Thank You for walking with me every minute of every day. Thank you for the beauty that can be found everywhere I look. Thank you for wonder, joy and goodness that I experience myself and see in the people around me. Thank You for Your Presence in my life. Thank You, God, for Your amazing, transforming, & faithful love of me and of those all around me. Thank You for Your abundant generosity. Thank You for opening my eyes so that I can see how much you have given to me. Thank You for the food in my kitchen & a bed to sleep in, clothes to wear & a house that keeps me warm. This is just a small part of my list. There are so many things I’m thankful for always: specific friendships, family relationships, the health of my kids & grandkids, my growth & transformation over the last 8-15 years in my faith, in my relationship with God, in my emotional development, and in my awareness of so many things.
One way that I have tried to be thankful in addition to my “always-thankful-for” list is to identify 3 things that I’m grateful for particularly on each day (that is not on my ”always-thankful-for” list). Like this morning the sunrise really spoke to me & I appreciated it; or a phone conversation I had with a friend or a family member; or thankfulness for getting something accomplished that I wasn’t sure whether I would be able to do. I’ve been keeping a list for many years. I miss a few days, here and there, but I keep coming back to it because of the power I experience in my life by being grateful.
I have started to look for other ways to be grateful as well. I read something a week or two ago that suggested that we be grateful not only for a specific thing, but for how that thing came into our lives.For example: I am grateful for the tea that I’m drinking this morning. Then, I trace that present-day gratitude by identifying how that gratitude came to be. Then, not only am I grateful for the tea that I’m drinking this morning that warms my soul, but I’m grateful for my sister who gave me the tea, & I’m grateful to my son (who also loves tea) who gave me an electric kettle that heated the water for my tea. Then I realize I am so grateful for my relationship with my son, such that we know what each other like & are generous & caring enough to gift such a gift. And I am also grateful for my relationship with my sister and her generosity to share something that she enjoyed to share it with me. I am grateful, further back, for all the years we have spent together. Thinking my gratitude through and connecting all of the things that happen in order for me to experience this thing that I’m grateful for, seems to amplify the gratitude & make it even larger. I like that.
Lastly, if it feels like there’s nothing new for me to be grateful for today, I can take a deeper look at what I did this past month, week or day. This is another way to dip into how grateful we can be. Again something I read asked that I spend just 10 minutes to reflect on one or more of the following questions & write down my answers:
- What is something that I accomplished today? Was there something that particularly challenged me? Was it a positive choice I made (like I ate healthy food, I walked or moved more than I usually do)?
- What is a blessing I experienced? I laughed with a friend, I cried with a family member, I helped someone with something and I received something also from the experience.
- What is one area I want to grow in the next day, week or month? I want to not waste food in my refrigerator, I want to eat less processed food; I want to walk more steps or do more moving during the day; I want to sleep more; I want to spend less time on social media; etc.
Then end that reflection with a prayer of gratitude: Lord, thank You for guiding me, for helping me to accomplish what I accomplished today. Thank You for giving me this challenge, or this blessing. Thank You for helping me to grow and transform in my life. Your faithfulness, love and goodness bring blessings into my life Lord. Thank You..
Repeat this prayer throughout the week and see how gratitude and thanks given to God affect your days.
I am grateful that you took the time to read this blog post. If you have any other gratitude practices you would be willing to share, please let the Office know and we can add them to this post.
By: Deb Blum, HTLC member