Living Thanksgiving

It has come back once again to my favorite time of year - the holiday season and in particular Thanksiving. I went to church yesterday prepared to hear a "traditional" Thanksgiving sermon and nod my head in agreement that we should all count our blessings and then go on about my day. However, sometimes when you least expect it a simple phrase can get all "up in your business" and start to tear away at your heart walls and reveal changes that need to be made. What my pastor said I have never heard a pastor say before and certainly not from the pulpit! He said that he was reading his Bible and read a scripture verse that he did not like. (As a regular person and not a pastor, I knew from my own experience that in my most honest moments there was actually more than one verse that I did not like and wish was not in the Bible.) So...I was anxious to hear from one of God's Shepherds which one had caused him difficulty. He said it was the one that said, "give thanks in all circumstances". I took the time to find it right then and there (and yes I was still listening!) I believe that this particular phrase is in more than one place but I found it in I Thes. 5:18. He shared with us that he did not like that verse because it was hard to "give thanks in everything". I heartily "amened" that in my head. And yet...when I read the rest of the verse it said, "for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." Then his struggle with the verse became more clear because this was not a suggestion but something way more serious - something like a directive for life!
I immediately came up with all kinds of situations in which this would just be an impossible "directive" for my life because there are some really AWFUL things that happen in our lives. This morning I looked a little closer and did a little research. The verse did NOT say "give thanks for everything". Rather, it said "in" everything which changes things immeasurably. God does not tell me that I have to be thankful for bad or hard stuff. Rather, there are all kinds of things I can be thankful to God for - even in the midst of the hard circumstances. Even in the tough season or struggle I can be grateful to God for His presence, His mercy, His compassion, His comfort, His strength, and the list goes on and on.

That epiphany made the next part of my pastor's sermon make so much more sense. He said that people who are grateful or thankful have lives that are worshipful and demonstrate joy, humility, good stewardship, and generosity. In fact, when I looked up this verse in my commentary it said, "Thanklessness is a trait of unbelievers". Suddenly I "get" the directive for our lives - it was given for "believers". (Now the light bulbs are turning on!!) Can you imagine what a difference it would make in our world if even 10% of "believers" started to "Live Thanksgiving"? The impact would be unbelievable and our world would scarcely resemble the one in which we now abide.

I want to live a life like that but often my own circumstances are the only things on which I focus my attention. Yet...I have seen with my own eyes that kind of person and the fruit that is produced from that kind of living. Her name was Viola and she was my husband's grandmother. I honestly have to say that I have never met another person who "lived Thanksgiving" like she did. She was a small lady in stature with needs that were simple and wants that were few. Yet, her gratitude was HUGE. The simplest of things she treasured and kept in pristine condition. She once gave me her blender (in it's original box) that was many years old. (I knew it to be an early model due to it having a glass pitcher and harvest gold color). That is but one example of how she lived and treated nothing as disposable and took naught for granted. However, I knew that her life had not been an easy one and was filled with much pain and sorrow at various times. She had experienced the loss of a child, her husband had died at a young age, her finances were limited, and she had to raise her teenage son without a dad. Yet, those things were never the topic of conversation or the focus of her life. Joy, humility, good stewardship, and generosity were all traits of her life - all a result of her "living Thanksgiving". The obvious few things that were missing that I fear might be indicative of many of our lives were bitterness, anger, and stinginess. What a great example of someone who lived God's will in this command!

As I bring this writing to a close, I am reminded that Thanksgiving is not to be just one day that we celebrate. Rather, it is to be a lifestyle that we pursue. Saying "thank you" is always a wonderful courtesy and one that we should teach our children by example. However, "living Thanksgiving" is a daily decision that we make moment by moment. Life becomes so much more when we choose to be grateful. I know that firsthand from seeing that kind of life from my precious Grandma Russell. Happy Thanksgiving but even more so, "Happy Thankful Life!"