With a Thankful Heart

We are quickly approaching the Thanksgiving holidays and the lists have been started; the lists of dishes we want for Thanksgiving dinner, the grocery lists, lists of things to-do before Christmas, gift lists for all the family and friends you love, and lastly the list of the all the things we have to be thankful for. 

As a Christian, we should be thankful everyday we take a breath.  Now don’t get me wrong, it is absolutely okay to have a special time set aside to give thanks but there is not enough time to express ALL that I(we) should be thankful for.

Watchman Nee, in his book, “Let Us Pray”, addresses many aspects of prayer and how to pray for God’s will.  One way is to constantly be in prayer for every aspect of our lives not just the moments of discontent.  Thanking God on a daily basis can and should be a running list that really never ends but, continues daily with an authentic and heartfelt appreciation.  We easily remember to thank God for our daily bread but do we remember to be thankful for the farmer that grew the food?  Do we thank God for the truckers that hauled the food?  What about the hands that prepared the food to go to the store?  Did you thank God for the person that went to the store and bought the food then prepared it and put it on the table?

You get my drift.  There are thousands of things to be thankful for that we take for granted on a daily basis.  I always default to farming because it’s what I know and it touches every single person alive in some way, shape or form.   Our list of things we are thankful for can go on and on and on.  Just be thankful.  We don’t have to list them all everyday but go out of your way to be thankful for the things that touch your life but go unnoticed or are taken for granted. 

Be thankful for the pilot flying the plane or the doctor treating an illness.  Be thankful for the filling station that allows us to buy fuel for our cars.  Be thankful for the soda and candy bar so easily available when the craving strikes.  Be thankful for the AC when it’s hot and the heat pump when it’s cold.  Be thankful that you get to live free and choose just as freely the things you do on a daily basis.  1 Thessalonians 5:16-18. “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.”  Give thanks with a grateful heart.