Cultivating a Gracious Heart
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Thanksgiving (in the US) is just around the corner.
Many of us will gather with family and friends, eat way too much, and give a nod to giving thanks. Except this year—2020—many will not be able to gather. Giving thanks will not happen easily.
Is it possible, then, to be truly grateful on this day set aside to give thanks? And what about the rest of the year? Can we walk through life with a grateful heart?
There are a number of actions, choices we can make, that can help grow a heart that gives thanks. I think you will be glad if you give these a try:
Write: Name and write down people, places, blessings in your life right now that you can say “thank You, Lord” for.
Remember: How God has rescued or changed you. Hard situations that made you stronger. The times you rejoiced. The times you cried. The evidence that God has been with you every step of the way.
Read: Scripture is full of examples of thanking God, reminders to be thankful, even commands to “give thanks in everything.” Do a study on "giving thanks” in Scripture, beginning with 1 Thessalonians 5:18.
Reflect: Scripture and the life of Jesus assure us that God is God and God is good. He is in control and He loves you. Have you seen evidence of that? Does that help you say “Thank You, Lord” in even the most painful situations?
Repeat: The most important way to cultivate a grateful heart is to practice. Over and over, in every situation. In our family, we have been intentional about learning to say “Thank You” for the good and for what doesn’t seem good to us.
Steve: Not long ago my husband was faced with a number of significant challenges in the ministry, any of which could cause significant problems for the organization. If all of them took a wrong turn, the consequences could be severe. His response: “Thank You, Lord, that You are in control. We can trust You.”
Judy: This Covid pandemic has been challenging. I’ve basically stayed home for eight months now. I can still get my work done. Zoom and FaceTime are so helpful. But I have found it difficult to thank God that I am not getting to see any of my grandchildren. I start to whine or complain, but God reminds me to give thanks. That changes my attitude.
Debbie: I’m thankful for things that are hard enough that I have to admit to myself that everything is not ok. There has been plenty to choose from this year...Covid, other health issues, emotional adjustment for the kids to a new home and school, a drawn out home renovation. I have had to take an honest inventory of my heart and lay all of the yuck in front of the Lord so he can restore and renew as only He is able to do. I don’t actually like the process, but I am thankful to follow a God who loves me enough to bring me gently into a more mature version of who He created me to be.
Michelle: Not a great fan of running, Michelle wasn't thrilled when husband Brad took up serious running. But she joined him just to be with him and engage in what's important to him. Before long she began to enjoy it. She ended up becoming a personal trainer. Now it has "become something I am thankful for to benefit me personally as well as the whole family."
Josh: In his younger life, our son was not a grateful person. But God has done some beautiful work in him. Even when his beloved grandfather was dying, he said, through his tears: “I’m really trying to say ‘Thank You, Lord’ in this, but it is really hard.”
What about you? How do you cultivate a grateful heart?
C2020 Judy Douglass
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