One Sassy Ma: Take Root & Write

Do You Have a Thankful Heart?: "

When my children were small I constantly reminded them to say thank you when they were the recipients of a kind act. When they got a little older (middle-school age), I continued prompting them. By the time they were in high school, they were proficient at expressing a hearty thank you.

I also attempted to teach them to write thank-you notes, but since neither of them enjoyed literature, a written thank you was more of a struggle. One would have thought I asked them to write a novel for publication when I required them to write a meaningful note that did not look like hieroglyphics. I’m not sure who suffered more, the boys or me.

As I look around our society, it appears that the simple act of expressing appreciation is dying. For example, I have yet to receive a thank you note from the last wedding I attended, or a note of thanks for the last two baby gifts I bought. There is no need to cast stones here, because I’m sure I’ve missed a few acknowledgments myself. But, overall, I think the art of “thank you”, whether in written or verbal form, is not what it used to be.

Can any of you relate?

Anyone who reads the Bible sees that it is jammed packed with variations of the word thanks . . . thankful, thanking, and thanksgiving. The list goes on and on. The idea of thanks may not be as prevalent in our society as it should be, but it is alive and well in God’s Word. If we are going to be living examples of His kingdom, we need to better display our own gratitude.

Give Thanks in all Things

1 Thessalonians 5:18 says:

“give thanks in all circumstances...” (NIV)

I giggle at the thought of trying to get a candy-loving, broccoli-hating youngster to give thanks for a steaming piece of the green stuff decorating their plate. If you’ve ever witnessed that scene, you know it is a traumatic event for a child to face a yucky green vegetable. But, being thankful can be equally scary for us big kids!

Not so much in the sense of a steaming veggie, but, rather, in a grown up way. What happens when we should give thanks when a paycheck does not stretch as far as it use to? That can be frightening. What if our car breaks down and leaves us stranded?

I don’t think anyone, including God, expects us to be giddy about a bad situation; but, as Christians, we need to find something in the midst of a bad scene that we can be thankful for.

Many years ago I lived in Dallas and one of my biggest fears was breaking down on a freeway. Because of the location of my employment in relation to where I lived, I always traversed the interstates and I knew it was just a matter of time before my rickety old car broke down. When it finally did, I had just exited off a busy freeway and driven one block.

Thank God I was on a side street. I was also grateful that I was not too far from home. My husband was in class that evening, so I had to call a friend who eagerly canceled her evening activities to come to my rescue.

Was I glad my car broke down? No. But, there were plenty of reasons in the midst of my trouble to thank and praise God.

Give Thanks to the Lord, for He is Good

Psalm 107:1 says:

“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, his love endures forever.” (NIV)

God is good, but sometimes we totally miss this concept.

I hate to go to the grocery store. There for awhile, the whole world knew it because I bellowed my dislike with enthusiasm. But, one day it dawned on me that I should not complain with such fervor. So I tried thinking of something good about going to the store...food! I was thankful for the food. That one word opened the floodgates of gratitude.

I appreciate the fact that I don’t have to grow and harvest my own fruits and vegetables. I am really thankful that I don’t have to raise and butcher my own livestock. And, I am grateful I didn’t have to run down a squawking chicken and wring its neck in order to have something to throw in the crock-pot. God is good.

We must give thanks. There is plenty in our everyday lives to be thankful for when we open our eyes and hearts; whether it’s the blessings surrounding a broken-down vehicle, a corner grocery store that allows us to live like city slickers instead of frontier women, or God intervening in a catastrophic event.

Do You Have a Thankful Heart?

I can only answer for myself and I must admit that I don’t always have a thankful heart. Sometimes I am quite selfish and I don’t appreciate anything but my misery. But, when I realize I’m out of whack, I move into a place of thankfulness. Whether it is appreciating my husband who made me mad or my kids who did something silly as teens will do, I remind myself of the things I am eternally grateful for. That usually helps keep me back on track no matter what originally derailed me.

Practical Christianity does its best to display a grateful heart and a thankful attitude no matter the circumstances. Do you have a thankful heart? During the times you struggle, be encouraged by 1 Thessalonians 5:18 and Psalms 107:1 and don’t hesitate to lift praises to God as part of your thankful spirit.