One-way: gratitude

Look at the trees, anchored down firmly, held in place by gravity and by God’s plan.

I confess to watching reality TV shows. I have been noting a trend in some of them, where a hunter kills an animal, places a hand on the animal, and says, “Thank you.”  Often there will be a further comment, sometimes a voiceover, which states appreciation for the deer’s giving its life.

Do I say thank you to the iron skillet for frying the loin pieces for my dinner? Do I say thank you to the fork for bringing the food to my mouth? Do I thank the hand that holds the fork for participating in feeding me?

Of course not. I thank the true source, our God who provides all things good. There are many things that we take for granted.  I woke up feeling grateful today and began to think of the things and people and events  I take for granted. The list is innumerable. For instance, gravity.

Just imagine you start to fall, a too-frequent occurrence for someone with a muscular dystrophy. We can be thankful for falling down to the floor or ground instead of floating away out of sight. I don’t like falling down, but today I’m thankful for gravity.

The child of a young friend of mine recently got into legal trouble, was found guilty, and sentenced to years in a correctional facility.  I could be judgmental and thankful that it was my friend and not me. Yet, I feel sad that this event happened.  I feel grateful that he is given the opportunity to learn from his mistakes and maybe change the course of his life.

God is to be praised in all circumstances.  It sounds a little Pollyanna-ish, but I have reached the age to realize God’s hand is at work if we don’t see it and that “these things happen so that [His] child may learn.” Even when we. don’t understand, we can praise God for his wisdom and His all-surpassing knowledge reatly exceeding our own.

I am grateful for answered prayer; I’m grateful for the answers already on their way before I even voice my prayers.

I am grateful for the visit from an old friend, a former student, who shared some venison sausage with us. Note I’m grateful to God for  these things, not to the deer for sacrificing his life.

As this month of Thanksgiving ends,  one way of finding joy in our lives is that of being grateful.  Practice the presence of God by saying thank you. You become more aware of his actions in your life. If you come to recognize his hand, you will begin to see his heart.