When holidays rolls around, I always fear
that each year we move farther from the true purpose of the day, replacing it
with more self-oriented indulgences. I
suppose it’s human nature to make things revolve around ourselves, but embedded
in each of these holidays are wonderful teaching moments for our families, our
communities, and especially our children.
One of the major risks I see in
Thanksgiving is that it becomes more about the food than it does the
purpose. Food is wonderful; we need
food. Food is a great source of comfort
and conversation. It’s also one of the
great distractors from dealing with real issues. We use food to make us feel better. We congregate around the kitchen where the
food is being prepared and we talk about haw tasty it is. There’s nothing wrong with this. There’s nothing wrong with taking a single
day of the year to prepare a feast in which we celebrate our many
blessings. We have all been incredibly
blessed to living in America, a country overflowing with milk and honey. Let’s not make is about the milk and honey,
let’s make it about the blessing.
From the time we are kids, we are taught
to say “thank you.” Why is this? Why is saying please and thank you part of
what we consider to be a reflection of good manners? Who invented manners anyway? In doing a little research, I found myself down
a rabbit hole of discovery around manners verses etiquette. What I concluded was that etiquette is an
outward, learned language that was put in place for us to all get along better
(and perhaps to separate the nobles from the hoi polloi back in the 1600s). Manners, while also learned, are more of a
reflection of inner self. Saying “thank
you” is a reflection of your genuine gratitude for having received
something. Teaching your kids to say “thank
you” is a seed planted to instill them with a heart of gratitude.
What is gratitude? Simplified, gratitude is an appreciation for
having received something unexpected or undeserved. From the Latin word gratia, we also get the word
grace, which means an unearned gift.
In my peanut-sized brain, I’ve come to believe three important things
about Gratitude. Gratitude is essential
to a fulfilling life, gratitude is voluntary, and gratitude can change our
society, our culture; our people.
Since the birth of mankind, since we
began to ask questions, since philosophies and religions have been developed, gratitude
has been intertwined. From ancient
writings, to current empirical studies, there is irrefutable evidence that being
grateful leads to better health, happiness, spiritual well-being, and even financial
well-being. Since it’s based on an
expression of an unearned gift, there’s a humility that comes with gratitude. Who doesn’t want better health, happiness,
and overall well-being? So if there’s
clear evidence as to the benefits of gratitude, what’s keeps us from being
grateful?
For some reason, it seems to me that our society
and culture is constantly reminding us that we deserve more. We’re
constantly being reminded of our individual greatness and abilities. I don’t know about each of you, but I’m a
pretty flawed individual. I make stupid
decisions, say the wrong things, don’t exercise enough, take selfish action,
and have all sorts of traits that could use vast improvement. And in spite of my many many flaws, I live a
wonderfully blessed life. I have three
healthy children, live in arguably one of the nicest places on earth, have an
incredible wife, was raised in a fantastic family, none of which I’ve earned or
deserved. If we feel we deserve everything we’ve been
given, where is the place for gratitude?
When will we reflect on and appreciate the grace we’ve been shown? With the promotion of self-orientation and
personal greatness, I fear that gratitude is being shoved aside. Please don’t let this happen in your life, or
in the lives of those around you. There
are too many benefits to gratitude that you don’t want to miss.
When we get our families, our communities,
our country, and our society to begin to express gratitude, we have the power
to create the type of world we want for our kids and grandkids. With gratitude comes generosity, humility,
compassion, and selflessness. Can you
argue that these are bad things? Don’t
you think a culture that embodies these characteristics is one in which we will
all be happier, healthier, and more spiritually fulfilled? This all starts with gratitude. Consider this when teaching your kids to say
thank you; you are planting the seed of gratitude.
Thanksgiving has always been one of my
favorite holidays. For me, I was
incredibly blessed to be born into a wonderful family. We’re far from perfect; we each have our
defects, but we genuinely love each other without conditions. For us, Thanksgiving has been a day that we
all get to be together, break bread, talk, sing songs, then fall asleep on the floor
all over the house. I did nothing to deserve
being born into this family, it was a gift for which I’ll be eternally grateful.
Today, on Thanksgiving, let’s change the
perspective a bit. Rather than getting
out the laundry list of things we’re thankful for, let’s think of what we’re
grateful for. What are the gifts you’ve
been given that you didn’t necessarily deserve?
Did you deserve your family? Your
kids? Your health or wealth? Do you think these are the result of your coolness? The list might be similar, but the perspective
is different.
For those of us with a Christ-centered perspective,
do we deserve the ultimate gift, the gift of salvation, to get into
Heaven, to have life in eternity? Are we
blameless and without sin? I’m not. But you and I have both been given a
gift. We were given the gift that
someone else was blameless, without sin, and was qualified to get into Heaven.
And He took the blame for us. We
are guilty as accused, but He offered to take the punishment, the capital
punishment, that we might be set free. The
fact is that He already did this. It’s
done. He paid your debt. All you have to do is say “thank you.” All you have to do is be grateful.
May this Thanksgiving, and the year to
come, be a wonderful blessing to you and your family! I’m grateful you took the time you view this
snapshot into my mind!
In the wise words of Grandma O,
"Gobble Gobble!"
