November 2009 Pastor's Ponderings

What are five things for which you are thankful? You’ve got 30 seconds. On your mark, get set, go!

Tic-toc, tic-toc, tic-toc …. Hurry up! The stopwatch isn’t waiting! ... … … … … Buzzzzzz. Time’s up!

How did you do? What? You couldn’t think of five things in 30 seconds? Unfortunately, if you still haven’t thought of them, you are probably in good company.

Truth be told, even in our darker days, there is much for which we can be thankful. I speak with a young woman several times a week. She is about 25 years old, and if she were able to stand – which she never has and never will, barring a miracle – she might be about 36 inches tall. She relies on constant medical care, is fed through a tube, has spent more time in the hospital than most people ever will, and except for brief occasions, spends most of her week in the same bed, in the same room. Her twin sister was a gymnast, but this young lady cannot even get herself out of bed. Despite all that she has been through and the future ahead of her, she is full of life and thankfulness. When I spend even a couple minutes with this young lady, her ability to find joy in her circumstances sheds a whole new light on my life.

Whether it is people living in what we would consider shacks on stilts along the Amazon River or in 12x12 foot huts with dirt floors, no electricity, and no plumbing in the mountains of Guatemala, or young men from the ghetto, Christians in much worse circumstances than I continue to teach me the meaning of gratitude.

I am convinced that gratitude is an underappreciated and often unidentified spiritual practice. Most of us have some experience with prayer and scripture reading. Some are familiar with Sabbath, meditation, and practices such as lectio divina. A few inconvenience themselves a little and go as far as fasting. Our slowness identifying the things for which we are thankful betrays our lack of gratitude. Thanksgiving rarely gets mentioned outside of November. Truth be told, spending just five minutes reflecting, seeking those things for which we can be thankful, can be like a light turning on in our lives. As we become aware of the many things for which we can be thankful, we become aware of what we have and what we lack begins to seem less important, we become aware of how God has provided and his presence, and we discover a new clarity in both our faith and life.

Thanksgiving is a way of life, not just a day.

Your bother in Christ,
Paul