Thank-Full

Here we are again, curbing right up beside the Thanksgiving holiday, ready to gather together with family and loved ones all for the sake of giving thanks. Well, let's just say that's what it is supposed to be all about. Yet, if you've traveled to your local Walmart, Target, or Costco lately, you may have surmised that Thanksgiving is that meal we all get together to eat before the big ballgames come on later in the day, and the signal that Christmas shopping starts on the blackest of Fridays the very next day. Thursday will be the recognized, official day for Thanksgiving and giving thanks for all we have been given needs to be our focus, yet I would suggest that it isn't as easy as it sounds if your "Thank-full" tank is running on empty. 

 

To earnestly give thanks we have to demonstrate thankfulness throughout every aspect of our lives. Just as it is critically important that we don't allow our car's gas tank to run empty, we must also keep an eye on our "Thank-full" tank and assure we don't allow it to be running on fumes as we journey in and out of each day God gives us to live. If we aren't careful, when we reach a tough spot along our journey, we may not be able to objectively look at our circumstances and still be able to give thanks. Instead, we may turn more towards a subjective inspection and base our "Thank-full" gauge more on what we don't have and "need" rather than thinking about all we do have and gratefully acknowledging those gifts in our thoughts and prayers each day. 

 

The Apostle Paul's tank tapped out the "Thank-full" side of the spectrum. Beaten, cast out into the sea for a day, imprisoned, beaten some more, and then tortured and imprisoned with the potential of being put to death, Paul could have received a pass if he were sitting around the turkey table with us today. But, Paul’s letters to the church in Thessalonica instructed them in this manner, "Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."  I Thessalonians 5:16-18. What do you have going on in your life right now that is making it hard to give thanks in all circumstances? If you compare your life to that of your neighbor or a colleague at work or even worse if you spend your time comparing your life to the one on that "reality" show you are watching, then you are looking in the wrong direction. Social media, television, celebrities, and sports figures are not, for the most part, the norm of which we should be basing our "Thank-full" tanks. Our thankfulness needs to be completely based on what we have to be thankful for as we go through the day to day walk of life. 

 

The key to running on a "Thank-full" tank can be found in doing a daily inventory of all you have to be thankful for and then giving thanks for that tankful each and every day. Let's consider the following "Thank-full" perspectives. "I have to get up in the morning and go to work every single day, it feels like I never get a break and I hate this job!" Or "This isn't my dream job, but you know what? I am so thankful that I have a job and it is allowing me to learn more about how things work and may lead me to different pathways as I journey along life's highway." How about this introspection example, "My life is so complicated right now, my calendar is full, I have multiple deadlines to meet, and to top things off my daughter is sick, and I really don't have time to keep the wheels turning on all the buses I’m driving!" Or could it possibly sound more like this, "God you have given me a full plate at work and at home, yet I am thankful that you have given me this job which allows me to support my family and stretch my mind. I am grateful that I have family members that can help out with my sick child and encourage me along the way." Just as we have to take the time and effort to refuel our gas tanks before they go empty, we must also refuel our "Thank-full" tanks with intentional time and effort given to gratitude and being thankful. 

 

Ryan Fehr, a renowned gratitude guru, offers the following steps to take as you keep your "Thank-full" tank on the full side every day regardless of our circumstances at any one particular moment. 

 

Step 1: Put your gratitude on paper
Write down the names of three people or things in your life you are grateful for, and why.

Step 2: Have a gratitude conversation
Have a conversation with a friend, family member or coworker to share what you’re most grateful for.

Step 3: Tell someone you appreciate them
Identify a specific person in your life and tell them why you are grateful for them over phone or video chat.

Step 4: Pay it forward
Find a way to show your gratitude to someone in your life by helping them in some small way.

Step 5: Reflect and repeat
Take a few moments to reflect on how your gratitude exercises went and commit to at least one act of gratitude every week.

 

It takes work to choose to be thankful, but it also takes work to be ungrateful. The fortunate thing about being "Thank-full" is you get to make the choice on what you will focus your attention on each day. We can choose to be "Thank-full" throughout the year or we can get together on the day before Black Friday and focus on the mindset that the dinner mess is over and the dirty dishes still have to be cleaned. I choose "Thank-fullness" today and every day! Thank you, God, for all you have given me and all I have!  

"Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; for His steadfast love endures forever!" 

I Chronicles 16:34

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Coach Carter