It's November 1st! Do you know what that means?
Thanksgiving is coming! Yahoo--the best holiday season of the year (well, at least in my humble opinion). What's not to love? Generally beautiful weather--not too cold yet, but chilly and invigorating. The fall leaves are still colorful for a few weeks yet. Pumpkin everything--Hallelujah! It's the Bubba Shrimp time of the year for pumpkin--from pumpkin cake to pumpkin lattes, to pumpkin pie, to pumpkin candles, to pumpkin chocolate chip bread, to pumpkin pasta, to pumpkin beauty products. Thank You, Lord, for creating pumpkins...You did pretty much a home-run on that one!
But that's not all there is to love about Thanksgiving. There's pilgrims and our remarkable heritage of godliness, perseverance, and faithfulness in the most difficult of circumstances. There's family coming home and getting together--praise, praise, praise God for that! And surely most life-changing of all: there's a huge emphasis on gratitude and thankfulness. We simply cannot be reminded enough to be thankful--thankful to our glorious God and thankful to all the people He's put in our lives.
So here's the deal: how about joining me in a 30 day gratitude challenge? And that means something very simple: everyday, let's be very deliberate to notice and then thank the Lord for His blessings and goodness in our lives that day. Write down or record in some way whatever it is for which you're grateful to God that day.
It doesn't have to be long or elaborate. Even if it's just one tiny thing--because sometimes in the hard seasons of life it's more of a struggle to find reasons for thanksgiving. But that's especially the time we need it most badly! When life seems uncertain or dark or desperate, we need to remind ourselves of God's unfailing goodness, grace, mercy, power, forgiveness, and love. And we especially need to notice the gifts He showers upon us even in those sad or challenging seasons--the beauty of a fall sunset, the song of a bird, the hug of a friend, the happy "welcome home!" of a dog, the invigorating bite of the air, the joy of a sweet memory, the comforting warmth of a hot beverage, the encouragement of God's Word.
No matter what you're enduring or facing, there are always, always, always myriad reasons for gratitude. So start your list--even if it's just one thing a day. When our daughter was so sick in the ICU and fear threatened to totally overwhelm me, I started--by faith, NOT feeling--listing His gifts. The Starbucks downstairs...our dear family and friends helping and keeping us going...the wonderful ICU nurses... It was truly remarkable how starting that simple, short list would change my attitude and infuse me with a shot of hope...a shot of "God is here and He is good, and I will feel Him with my faith even when I can't feel Him with my feelings."
So there you have it--30 days of listing your reasons for gratitude. Oh, and one more thing: how about sharing at least one of those reasons for thankfulness with at least one other person? You could email them or text them or call them or tell them over dinner. Because thankfulness shared not only multiplies our joy but is also contagious! Who knows how someone else might be encouraged or strengthened by your expression of gratitude?
By the way, one of the things I'm thankful for today is the ministry of Young Life. Thank You Lord for the difference Young Life has made in the lives of so many kids across this world...including the Fountain crew and their friends in our little neck of the world. Thank You for the selfless leaders who give of themselves in countless ways and who invest relentlessly in the lives of others. And thank You for the Raleigh Young Life banquet tonight and the privilege of telling Your story and Your work across this city.
Might all our lives be a gigantic thank You to the One who has done all and given us all. He is worthy of all our thanksgiving and praise! To God be the glory.
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