Make Thanksgiving a Way of Life

“And give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 5:20 NLT)

This weekend my husband and I enjoyed a “grandma grandpa sleepover.” I don’t know who had more fun—children or grandparents.

Simple things can bring big smiles to little kids—eating macaroni and cheese for supper and chocolate chip pancakes and fruit smoothies for breakfast, watching “Finding Nemo,” reading bedtime stories aloud, feeding goats and chickens at a petting zoo, seeing a turkey close-up for the first time, and climbing on the play toys at McDonalds.

Expressions of gratitude warmed my heart

I smiled, too, as I watched the kids’ enthusiasm and heard their expressions of gratitude:

“You make the best pancakes, Grandma!”

“Mmmm. I love macaroni and cheese.”

“Thanks for taking us to the petting zoo!”

A personal highlight was hearing five-year-old Luke tell his parents, “It was so much fun. I had a great sleepover!”

The same is true for our heavenly Father

Hearing the kids’ gratitude expressed warmed my heart. I imagine the same is true for our heavenly Father when we, His children, say thank you to Him for His gifts to us.

Sometimes those gifts come in the form of obvious blessings—financial and material prosperity, good health, physical safety, loving relationships, and dreams fulfilled. At other times, however, those gifts come in less obvious ways—through difficult situations that leave us clinging to His promises and experiencing their reality in ways as never before.

Canadians are celebrating Thanksgiving Day today. No doubt many will gather around a festive table and pause to thank God for the abundance.

But I suggest we take it a step further and make thanksgiving an attitude in which we live 365 days each year no matter our circumstances. Imagine the Father’s joy in hearing His children express gratitude as a way of life!

“Practice makes perfect” applies here. I’ll start by saying I’m thankful for having a home.