I’m one of those persons who believes gratitude can be endless; there is always something to be thankful for… on good days, bad days, all days in between. In fact, even in sadness and sorrow, we can still be thankful to the great big God of the universe. It’s profoundly amazing — even in those times of sadness and sorrow — how the intentional expression of thanks positively impacts our entire health and well-being.
What are you thankful for? (… a small compilation of your gratitude — edited for the purposes of conciseness…)
- I’m thankful for my family and friends.
- I’m thankful that there is breath in my body for another day.
- I’m thankful for my my job.
- I’m thankful for a few days off work.
- I’m thankful for the Hallmark channel and all the sappy movies.
- I’m thankful the election is over and there are no more political ads! (At least for a while.)
- I’m thankful for the opportunity to serve others in disaster recovery!
- I’m thankful for our veterans.
- I’m thankful to be cool. (Thanks, Josh.)
- I’m thankful for trees that are green in the summer, with red, orange, and yellow in the fall, and snow covered or icy in the winter and beautiful flowers in the spring. I love how God uses his creativity to make the world we live in so beautiful!
- I’m thankful for my church.
- I’m thankful for my ‘hood.
- I’m thankful for coffee and wine. Sometimes more wine.
- I’m thankful for a good book.
- I’m thankful my cancer is gone!
- I’m thankful for snow.
- I’m thankful for no snow.
- I’m thankful that God knew we would need a plan of redemption that Jesus was willing to fulfill.
- I’m thankful for Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs!
- I’m thankful to be getting married in less than 2 weeks!
- I’m thankful the Halloween candy is gone!
- I’m thankful my kids are home.
- I’m thankful for the Ronald McDonald House.
- I’m thankful for my animals.
- I’m thankful for planes, trains, and automobiles that help us get where we need to go.
- I’m thankful for a renewed understanding of community.
- I’m thankful for Game Day!
- I’m thankful that even through the hard stuff, God showed me things. I’m ok.
- I’m thankful for “The Office,” “Friends,” and Netflix.
- I’m thankful I only have to cook once this week, even if it is a really big once.
So again I ask: what are you thankful for?
Shall we practice gratitude?
As our nation pauses this week, may we practice gratitude — being always aware of the blessing and benefit from the intentional expression of thanks.
Happy Thanksgiving, friends… always…
AR