Thanksgiving!

It's almost THANKSGIVING!!! I cannot tell you how much I am looking forward to the days off work and the great feast of which I will soon partake. Oh, the turkey, stuffing, and freshly mashed potatoes covered in lakes of gravy! And the nap that follows such a feast will be heavenly. I'm giddy just thinking about it.

Often amidst the gigantic meal of pure deliciousness, I fear that the purpose of Thanksgiving is forgotten. It's supposed to be a time of thanks to God for all of His blessings. But this nearly nonexistent time of thanks shouldn't be on just one day a year, it should be a constant attitude for those who love Him. First Thessalonians's 5:18 says " Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." This isn't just a suggestion, it's His will for us! This is an attitude that His people need to be portraying always.

I like how that verse says "in all circumstances." We've all gone through times where thanking God is the very last thing on our minds. But I think it's in these moments where thanking God has the most power. Back in May of 2009, I was going through a time where nothing was going as I wished and I often complained to God about it in my journal. After our Sunday School lesson on thankfulness, I decided to make a list of things I was thankful for. This small list turned into multiple pages of things I was glad to have, ranging from serious to frivolous. But by the end of that list, God had pointed out countless things that I often take for granted. It totally changed my perspective from a whiny girl unhappy with her circumstances to a very thankful girl in awe of how Father in Heaven had so sweetly blessed her.

Just for fun, here's part of that list:

- My awesome cell phone (which isn't near as awesome as the Android phone I have now!)

- My Godly family

- School

- Blankets (I like being warm, but I probably have too many)

- Coffee

- Movie theaters

- Brownies

- My CAR!! (Although the Corolla is much nicer than the one I had then)

- Mountain Dew :)

- Flip flops

- My country (Sometimes it annoys me, but as written in this post, I'd rather be here than anywhere else)

This is what I wrote after the multi-page list:

"God, you've given me so many things. Please help me to be thankful for all these things I listed instead of sad about the things that aren't a part of this list. I don't deserve any of it, but you give it to me anyways. Father, help me to be overflowing in thankfulness."

My prayer above that I would always be thankful is the same one I have today. While it's deliciously great to have that giant meal, I don't want to be thankful just one day a year. God requires and deserves so much more than that.