The Lord has really been teaching me a lot lately about being grateful. And not just grateful for the big things either, but for every little seemingly insignificant thing. I wrote a
post back in June talking about this journey I'm on towards achieving this goal, and I wish I could say that I'm there....but I'm really not. I guess I didn't realize that it was so hard to remember to thank God for things. I mean truly, I owe Him everything. EVERYTHING. The air in my lungs, the clothes on my back, the food in my stomach, the ground that I walk on. None of it is my own, and yet I use it thoughtlessly as if it's rightly mine. Well it's not. . . . None of it is. It's all a gift. Even my ability to live and think and dream is a gift.
So if this is all true, then
WHY is it so difficult for me to remember to be thankful?
The answer is quite simple really. It's because I'm
self-centered. I'm just plain
inconsiderate, and I'm starting to feel like the spoiled-rotten daughter of a rich CEO who doesn't think twice about all the amazing things her father gives her. And I know I'm not alone in this one either. When is the last time that you honestly thanked God for something that is usually overlooked by you or by others? If you make this thankfulness a daily practice, then I admire you, you are something that I'm aspiring to be. . . . but if not, and if you're just like me, then how do we get out of this mess? How do we become grateful? How do we remember that these lives are not our own?
I wish there was a simple solution. To be honest, I don't know how to fix this problem. I don't even have the slightest idea. But I know who does. His name is above all others, and He is the perfect example of gratefulness, even in the toughest of situations. His name is Jesus Christ. How amazing is it, that even on the final night before His crucifixion, He broke bread and
gave thanks? The cross was before him and He knew He was going to die a painful death. . . .yet he STILL gave thanks. (
1 Corinthians 11:24) It's incredible really. How amazing is it, that when 5,000 hungry people came to hear him preach, the Lord gave thanks and was able to provide more than enough food for everyone? (
John 6:1-13) Amazing things happen when we give thanks!
"Eucharisto (thanksgiving) always precedes the miracle." -Ann Voskamp
So the big question here is "How?" I really don't know how. . . but I do know that I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. Even though I know I'm going to keep failing at being thankful, I know that the Lord is my rock and my stronghold. Even when we fall short in the area of thanksgiving, He still loves us just the same. This week I challenge you to be more conscious of the things God has provided you. I challenge you to thank God for the little things and the medium things and the big things. I'll be doing this challenge right along-side of you. . . I can't promise that I'll do it perfectly, but I pray that God will help me all the way.
