Thanks and Rejoice

 

The days prior to Thanksgiving are filled with activities.  There is the grocery shopping, cleaning, cooking, baking, etc.  The list seems endless and can leave us exhausted before the actual day arrives!  The actual day of Thanksgiving there is the pressure to ensure the meal is ‘just right’.  As we move through Thanksgiving, sometimes it can be difficult to see the ‘thanks’ in anything. 

Reflecting on the busyness of the day, I realized that this has become a reflection of our lives.  Moving from one item on the list to the next to ensure everything is done ‘just right’.  There is no time for relaxing, no time for chatter.  Just movement.  I find the same thing happening at work as I do at home – moving from one item on the list to the next without any time to chatter.  The days fall into weeks, the weeks turn into months and before we know it, we have lost the art of communication.

I am hoping that this Thanksgiving can be different.  I am hoping that this one we can all bring it down a notch and realize the importance of who we are with and what we are thankful for.  When the children were younger, we used to make a ‘Thankful Chain”.  It was paper strips of thanks that were completed each night and hung together as we worked through November.  Seeing thanks through the eyes of a child helps to put life into perspective.

This Thanksgiving, may we have a change of heart, of soul, and of mind.  May we take the time, each day, to thank those around us – from coworkers, to cashiers, to our family members.  May we realize all the little things that they do that passes by us on a regular basis.  May we take the time to say ‘thank you’ to those near and far.

Let us not lose sight of the One that deserves all our thanks, Jesus.  It is because of Him that we can get up each day and rejoice in the goodness.  It is because of Him that we know that even a bad day is a good day when God walks beside us.  It is because of Jesus that we have a direct line to our heavenly home.  For the sunrise, the sunset, and all the minutes in between, take the time to thank our Savior.  Without Jesus, our lives would face damnation.  May we wake up each day, realize it is the day our Lord has made, and be glad – and grateful – for it!  Happy Thanksgiving.

Dearest Jesus, help to remind us to take time to say thank you to those around us, rejoicing in all they bring to our lives.  May we never forget to thank you, Dear Lord, for each day you give us, for it turns Happy Thanksgiving into every day!