Our official Thanksgiving holiday has once again passed for another year. Christmas is coming, and the season of peace and goodwill surrounds us everywhere. In our Christian faith we know we are supposed to “give thanks to God for everything” Ephesians 5:20 and “give thanks in all circumstances” I Thessalonians 5:18.
But what if things in our personal lives leave us wondering how to give thanks at this time of year? What if we are suffering from loss or illness or loneliness so deep that it hampers us from truly being thankful for the blessings around us? Life is hard, even draining at times, and pain does not take a break when the holidays come. Sometimes pain is even more exposed when the calendar tells us we should be celebrating. How do we celebrate with a troubled heart?
In other words, how can we “give thanks” when we don’t feel very thankful??
** Remember what God has done. God invites us to remember. Just tonight as I spoke to a friend on the phone, she commented on how much our memories can comfort us. We can also remember the things that God has done for us in the past. We can hold onto those thoughts in the present and into the future, especially when our circumstances make it difficult to remember the goodness of life and our blessings from God. He is faithful. Through the good and the bad times. Remembering His goodness from the past will help us in seasons when it is harder to see Him and our vision is clouded.
** Remind God of His promises. This may sound odd because God is all-knowing and doesn’t need us to remind Him of things. But He invites into a reminding-prayer relationship. This is usually for our own sake, not His. It is good for us to remember God’s promises. It is not only important, but urgent that we stay in communication with God when life has not gone the way we expected it to. God asks us to remember Him, and that practice can often lead our hearts to a place of thanksgiving for our past and a hope for our future.
While God promises never to forget or abandon us, at times we can feel forgotten. It’s not that He is distant…but sometimes He feels far away from us. God is not preoccupied, but our struggles sometimes leave us feeling like we’re facing the world alone. Especially during the holidays we may need a little extra reminder. Remembering and reminding are tools of our faith that we can use through every season. We can know that when life is painful, it will not always stay that way.
Prayer doesn’t need to be anything but a simple “cry” out to God from inside of us. Sometimes His help seems so far off. We need to ask Him to give us the strength to cling to Him. We can ask for that promised shield of faith ( Ephesians 6). Ask for God to hear our cry for mercy ( Psalm 130). Or our cry for help (Psalm 5:2). And we can be transparent and share our need for strength for our tired and faint bodies ( Psalm 6:2).
Both blessings and sorrows flow freely through our days and lives as we live life alongside those we love and share space with. If our minds focus on being thankful, we will have less time and desire to worry or complain. It is kind of mysterious how this practice of thankfulness works, but it seems that when we give thanks (regardless of our feelings), in return we receive joy (in spite of our circumstances).
Enjoy this week as the calendar flips over to our last month of 2017. May we all search for things to be grateful for as the sun rises and sets each day. No matter what problems are in our path.
