Give Thanks Continually

 

The Sunday prior to Thanksgiving.  This fall season has passed even quicker this year!  Time is time, I realize that.  Time never changes.  We are the ones who change.   We are the ones who choose how to spend our time.  Over the years I have attempted to slow my life down a bit to match up with time itself.  I will try it for a week or two and before I know it, I feel as if I am losing time again!  That’s all on me!

Typically, November is a dreary month in New Hampshire.  It can start getting chilly and the skies above tend to be gloomier than the predecessor, October.  I like that weather as it almost forces me to slow down a bit.  There is not as much to do outside, and my attention turns inward.  I have always seen November as the month of gratitude.  It is my opportunity to slow down and realize all that I have and take the time to be grateful.  That gratefulness expands in many directions, family, friends, coworkers, and the world around us.  It is time to thank the one that gives it all to us, our Heavenly Father.  This gratitude has taken on a variety of forms over the years.  I have posted 30 days of gratitude on Facebook.  When the children were home, we made a ‘thankful paper chain.’  Each child wrote what they were thankful for that day and the paper chain would extend throughout the kitchen.  I have written down my thanks each day.  All were wonderful ways to glorify God for so many blessings.

This brings me to our post for today, Giving Thanks!  As I searched for the right verse I wanted to use today as inspiration, this is the one I chose.  There were many to choose from, but this one caught my eye for one reason!  Although I enjoyed all the ways I have focused on Giving Thanks over the years, there is one component missing that this verse taught me to see.  It is the word ‘continually.’  I enjoy spending time giving thanks in November in a way I do not focus on the other weeks and months of the year.  I may ‘thank in the moment’ or ‘thank during prayer.’  Yet the determined focus of reviewing all of the blessings I have in my life with intensity may go to the wayside.  I can blame it on not having enough time, but as was shared in the beginning of this post, we all have the same amount of time every day.  It is up to me, up to us, on how we use it.

So let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise!  May we focus intently, each day, on all the blessings He has provided to us – starting with His Son!  May we see all that we have, the trials, the tribulations, the blessings, and the goodness, all coming from the only One who can provide that to us.  May we realize that all situations are in our lives to share goodness, learning, strength, and faith.  May we understand that all of this comes from the One that gives us His unconditional love.  This Thanksgiving, and every day after that, let us offer, continually, praises to our Lord and Savior for all that we have.  May you and your family feel the goodness of God each and every day!  May I also take this opportunity to thank you for your continued support of reading this blog.  I cannot thank you enough for your kind words over the years.

Heavenly Father, thank you does not seem to be enough for all that you have given to us.  May we continually remember to give you praise, the One who gives all to us.  In thanksgiving we pray, Amen!