A Season of Thanksgiving

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Originally Published in the South Jetty Newspaper

"It is a good thing to give thanks to the Lord, and to sing praises to your name, O Most High..." (Psalm 92:1) I want to take this opportunity to invite us all into an intentional season of Thanksgiving. Yes, there is a Thursday coming up named for giving thanks, but why not beat the rush? Take time, in the midst of everything that is happening, to stop and practice gratitude. It is such a simple thing, and it is transformative. You could even challenge yourself and do it for a week: each day wake up and before consulting any electronic devices, write down four things you are thankful for, and allow that to shape your day. 

Giving thanks to God, as a regular practice, can transform how we feel about the world presently; it can teach us to be on the look-out for potential thanksgivings! Practicing gratitude can become like those car trip games, but instead of looking for words beginning with each letter of the alphabet, we can be on the lookout for the little surprises God is placing in our lives.


There are many ways to view the world; we cannot control things that happen, but we do have some measure of control over how we view those things, and how we respond to what is happening. If we are on the look-out for thing to be upset about, we will surely find them. If we practice adopting this view of gratitude, life's blessings will only become more and more apparent. 

Most Sundays I officiate at our worship service with people gathered in person or virtually around Christ's altar. We call the celebration Holy Eucharist. That comes from the Greek word for Thanksgiving. In the midst of the changes and chances of life, I am brought back weekly to an attitude of Thanksgiving to God. Through the ages, Christians around the world have grounded their week with a practice of giving thanks to God, and lifting up our hearts to God for the courage we will need to face the week to come, so our hearts might be open to the gifts God has in store for us. Regardless of any events that may happen, I have the ability to be thankful. 

Whether it happens around a church altar, or daily on the altar of our hearts, enter this season with thanksgiving. It is indeed, "a good thing to the thanks to the Lord..."

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