Thanksgiving

¹⁵Be very careful the, how you live — not as unwise but as wise, ¹⁶making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.  ¹⁷Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.  ¹⁸Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery.  Instead be filled with the Spirit.  ¹⁹Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.  Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, ²⁰always giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Ephesians 5:15-20

One Thanksgiving many years ago, a friend’s brother left the family’s Thanksgiving dinner, walked out onto the porch and shot himself in the head.  Obviously Thanksgiving has never been the same since then for that family.  Still, through all of life’s ups and downs, they have much to be thankful for.  While Thanksgiving still holds hurt, they also are reminded of love and support within the family, good friends, surviving loss and going on.  They appreciate the gift of life itself.  In another, similar case, the son of a dear friend was called by his best friend one October night.  His friend told him that he had decided he couldn’t go on and then shot himself while they were on the phone together.  My friend’s son was devastated by his friend’s suicide and goes through a period of sadness every fall.  Recently, when we were talking, I told my friend to remind her son that, although he was unable to stop the suicide, he made a big difference in his friend’s life, and the bond that they had was so close that he was the one his friend chose to spend his last moments with.  He may not have been able to avert the death, but he had made a difference in his friend’s life.

 How does one give thanks in cases like these?  Well, I know that in the case of my friend’s son, he has been able to help others cope with their losses.  Who knows which of them might have been unable to cope without his care and understanding?  He can be thankful for how God is using him in this way.  I know that similar situations in my own life have enabled me to help others in the same situation. 

I also know that those who committed suicide were so focused on what they thought they lacked that they were totally without thanksgiving for all they did have.  They were so inwardly focused that they failed to see beyond their problems and to see God, waiting to help them.  They never claimed the comfort, support and strength that He offered.

Gratitude not only covers a multitude of hurts, it makes hope come alive.  It gives color to life in the darkest, most drab circumstances.  A thankful heart communicates directly with the One to whom thanks are due and the relationship grows.

Max Lucado in God’s Story, Your Story wrote, “God works for the good. Not for our comfort or pleasure or entertainment, but for our ultimate good. Since he is the ultimate good, would we expect anything less?”  When we recognize that God is good and wants good for us, it enables us to be thankful even in dark times, knowing that good will inevitably follow.

George Herbert (an English poet and hymn writer in the late 16^th/early 17^th centuries) prayed, “Thou has given so much to me…Give me one thing more—a grateful heart.”  What a great prayer!  A grateful heart lifts us up even when we are weighed down.

“In ordinary life we hardly realize that we receive a great deal more than we give, and that it is only with gratitude that life becomes rich.  It is very easy to overestimate the importance of our own achievements in comparison with what we owe others. “  Dietrich Bonhoeffer

As you move into this Thanksgiving season, move beyond the delicious calorie-filled dinner and lift your heart in gratitude for the many, many blessings you enjoy; thank God for them.  Embrace the love and support in your life from so many others—family, friends, colleagues; thank God for them.  Consider your cares and worries, and thank God for what He will do with them.  Use the experiences He’s brought you through to help others, and to remind yourself of all that you have to be thankful for; thank God for that, too.  God loves you.  God is good.  Thank Him.  May this Thanksgiving be filled with wonderful thanks-giving in addition to wonderful food.

Prayer:  Lord, you have given us so very much.  Forgive for overlooking the source so frequently.  Help us to see how very blessed we are.  Give us one thing more — grateful hearts.

Emily

Advertisement