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| The late comedian/philosopher, Will Rogers, lamented the discontent of our culture when he said "In the days of our founders, they were willing to give thanks for mighty little, for mighty little was all they expected. But now, neither government nor nature can give enough but what we think it's too little." A culture of discontent has been cultivated and exploited by our commercial culture. By almost any standard we are an extremely wealthy society in the midst of a booming economy. Yet, we are each more acutely aware of what we want than we are of what we have. It has been often observed: Give a child a present and he is ecstatic. Give
him three presents and he is looking for the 4th and 5th. That seems a
good picture of us as a people.
Thankfulness comes from an old Anglo-Saxon term that meant "thinkfulness." Perhaps if we weren't so busy we would spend more time thinking and reflecting and it would occur to us how fortunate we truly are. Maybe if we would take the time to regularly recount all of the things and people and circumstances that bless us we would be more content. A friend has written: "We have been conditioned to believe in the big, the fast, the expensive and the far away. I'm still convinced that if you have to move even ten inches from where you are now in order to be happy, you never will be." We don't need more to be thankful for; we just need to be more thankful. Thankfulness is not simply an exercise in civility or a common social grace. It is an attitude of the heart that nurtures contentment and joy. Thankfulness not only reveals character, it produces it! Contentment is the result of an attitude of thanksgiving. A thankful heart examining the day is like a magnet sweeping through sand with particles of iron hidden in it. It gathers all the hidden mercies and blessings to itself and replaces bitterness with joy and dissatisfaction and restlessness with contentment. As someone has observed: "Thanksgiving is a triumph of gratitude over greed, selflessness over selfishness!" Thankfulness is also a declaration of humility and dependence. It is an acknowledgement that someone or something outside of myself has contributed to me. It springs from the reality that no one is in total control of his or her own destiny; gratitude gives credit to someone else. This is so contrary to the large self-absorbed bombastic egos that we find at every strata of our society. In the midst of self-aggrandizing athletes, politicians, and celebrities most of us find sincere and humble expressions of thanks refreshing. So does God! The New Testament describes worship as the fruit of lips that gives praise to God, who is ultimately responsible for every blessing you have! Thanksgiving is not only the very least that is due God but it is also refreshment for the soul. |
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by Rev. J. Patrick Curtis, Senior Pastor |
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