Give Thanks at Thanksgiving
Give Thanks!
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. I think I like Thanksgiving more than I like Christmas. (Is that a terrible thing to say?) Maybe it’s because it doesn’t come with quite as much cultural expectation. Or maybe it’s because I love anything made with pumpkin!
But what I also like about Thanksgiving is that it’s all about giving thanks and that’s important. Gratitude is a virtue but it’s also much more than that.
My parents taught me to say thank you and I’m thankful that they did. But being thankful does something for me too. It takes my focus off me and puts it on someone or something else and that changes me. It keeps me from being too inwardly focused and keeps me looking outside of myself.
GRATITUDE IS GOOD FOR YOU
It turns out gratitude is good for you. Researchers in Japan designed a research study using standard tests of cognitive ability and brain scans (MRIs) to measure the relationship between gratitude and cognitive function among older adults. They found that “higher levels of gratitude were associated with better cognitive function.” Grateful older adults did better on cognitive tests than those who were not grateful. So, based on psychological testing and brain imaging, the researchers concluded: “Gratitude may be important for maintaining cognitive function.”
It looks like Paul was on to something when he wrote his letter to his friends in Philippi:
With thankful hearts offer up your prayers and requests to God. Then, because you belong to Christ Jesus, God will bless you with peace that no one can completely understand. And this peace will control the way you think and feel. (Philippians 4:6-7)
Lakota author and activist Doug Good Feather says this:
“The simple act of practicing gratitude disrupts negative thoughts and changes our mindset to see the world in a positive way. Not only are we more attractive to others when we live in gratitude, but the most ordinary things can become extraordinary, creating a fuller, more beautiful expression of our life.”
AN ATTITUDE GRATITUDE
An attitude of gratitude… choosing love over fear, focusing on the positive instead of the negative.
So wake up every morning and before your feet hit the floor, tell God one thing you’re thankful for. The day has just started so it might just be thanks for the gift of another day. Or take a moment of pause in the evening and offer to God those times in your day for which you were grateful. Count your blessings throughout the day. Anything! Just notice, acknowledge, express, and give thanks.
What do you think?
How do you express gratitude?
What are you grateful for?
PRAYING FOR YOU
Pastor Leanne
Community Presbyterian Church
32202 Del Obispo
San Juan Capistrano. CA 92675
949-493-1502