Pastor's Corner: An attitude of gratitude

Gratitude is an attitude that comes out of the habit of giving thanks. 

All through the Psalms, no matter what circumstances David was facing, we read his outpouring of gratitude to God — “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is Good; his love endures forever.” As he encountered good times and bad times, David always turned back to the truth of God’s goodness. This attitude often carried him through the hardest of situations. For us, too, gratitude is a habit that is learned through practice.

Just as we teach little children to say please and thank you through repetition and relentless reminders, we learn to express our thanks to God through consistency. Yet, while gratitude is a habitual attitude, we want our thanksgiving to come out of a genuine heart. The more we meditate on God’s goodness and practice our thanks, no matter what our circumstance, the more it will naturally flow out of a heart that loves Him.

Furthermore, it is good to express our thankfulness to others. The Bible instructs us to encourage one another often. Paul, in his multiple letters to the churches he was leading, always reminds his friends how thankful he is for them. Usually, following his words of thanks are words of encouragement to help build them up. Thanks and giving go hand in hand. God can use us to share his love with others by simply sharing words of gratitude and support.

Here are a few gratitude ideas for the whole family:

Say grace before eating. Make a habit of saying a prayer of thanks to God as a family before eating meals.

Write gratitude letters to community servants. As a family, discuss the important role of community servants (police officers, firefighters, etc.) and write thank-you cards for these individuals.

Set up appreciation jars. Give each family member a jar or similar receptacle to decorate. Once they are decorated, set these out on a bookshelf or mantle. Place note cards near the jars and encourage your family members to drop gratitude messages and encouraging words into one another’s jars throughout the coming month.

Make a gratitude tablecloth. Cover your dining table with banner paper and have each member of the family write or draw pictures of things for which they are grateful. You can leave the tablecloth on the table for a while so you can reflect on your many blessings and add to it as additional things come to mind. If you’d prefer, you can use fabric markers and puff paints to document your gratitude on a cloth tablecloth. This provides you with a more permanent memento.

During this season of thanksgiving, let us remember all the blessings we have received and return those blessings in service to God and God’s people.

——

The Rev. Maggie Lewis

First Presbyterian Church Havre

Chinook Presbyterian Church