Pondering Thankfulness
“It is good to give thanks to the LORD, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning and your faithfulness by night.” Psalm 92:1-2 ESV
The Thanksgiving season always seems to bring about a thankful spirit in most people. My Facebook feed has been flooded with posts about thankfulness. With the rush of the Holidays coming now even before Thanksgiving Day and the attention to Christmas shopping that consumes most of November and December, it is nice to see people take the time to remember and reflect upon why they are thankful.
I’ve been pondering thankfulness lately. I began to realize that thankfulness and being content go hand and hand. Lately our family has struggled with making friends. I’m not sure why – this just seems to be our season to focus on each other and not have an array of friendships. I’ll admit that is hard sometimes. Facebook and other social media outlets are also really good at reminding you what friends you don’t have, what parties or game nights you are not invited to and what friends aren’t always truthful with their words. I can find myself easily getting caught up in feeling sorry for our family (or for myself for that matter) and not being content with what we have for this season – just us.
While I continue to pray for God to grant all of us friendship that will be nourishing to our souls and encouraging to our walk with God, I want to remember that what I have now is enough. If we never have another friend, the five of us are enough. We do enjoy being together. We are heading to Georgia for Thanksgiving week. Yes, we will be visiting family but we are staying in our RV at a campground away from family. (On a side note, that is why we are always welcome to visit family, we bring our own place to stay, our own food and stay out of the way). When we arrive home form Georgia, as a family we are participating in a charity 5K run at SeaWorld and spending the weekend camping to enjoy all of SeaWorld’s wonderful Christmas celebration. We have many other things planned, but once I sit and reflect on what is coming up immediately, my attitude changes and I do realize I am content. They are enough. And for that, I am thankful.
Families are a precious and cherished gift. It is easy to take them for granted or to think you want more. Focus on being content with whatever it is your struggling with and it will help develop a thankful attitude. The season of Thanksgiving is a great time to begin to ponder our attitudes, develop contentedness and be thankful for everything God has given us. It is good to give thanks to the LORD.
awesome post
So true, Dana. We often forget what we have is enough. I am thankful for each day I have with my family.
Have a blessed Thanksgiving.