I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving weekend. One of my favourite quotes about Thanksgiving is from John F. Kennedy, the former United States president: “As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.”
Thanksgiving is always a wonderful time to take the time out of our busyness to reflect on all the ways we have been blessed again this year. It is also an excellent opportunity to share our thankfulness through prayer and song and through conversations with family and loved ones. Thanksgiving also gives us the opportunity to remind ourselves that we should live our daily lives out of thanks to God for all His blessings to us. So often I recognize how much I take for granted- health, family, food, clothes, and shelter to name only a few. I also realize that sometimes I give undue worry and attention to the minor concerns and all the things missing in my life instead of living out the thankfulness for all that I do have.
This Thanksgiving again I committed to be more intentional to live my life in gratitude to God and to remember daily my many blessings. I also have committed to spending more of my time in prayer in thanksgiving than in supplication. A story which often comes to my mind around Thanksgiving is the story of Jesus’s healing of the ten men with leprosy found in Luke 17. In the story only one man came back to thank Jesus and praise him for the healing. Although we are quick to blame and shame the other nine for being so ungrateful, how often in our own lives do we not thank God and praise Him for the good things He has done for us? In the months ahead, may we all try to make each day thanksgiving – an opportunity to thank and praise our Lord for all His blessings!
