It's a Lifestyle

A room full of laughter. A closet full of warm colorful sweaters and scarves. Hot apple cider and chocolate chip cookies on a cold evening. Sitting in the living room with my whole family as we watch our favorite show. Catching up with friends over a cup of frozen yogurt. The sound of melody and harmony blending in my favorite songs.

Every year at Thanksgiving, I make a list of things that I am thankful for. That seems to be a pretty common tradition this time of year, but this season, I am beginning to see Thanksgiving as something much more than a day out of the year when I list my favorite things. 

Thanksgiving is not really a time to remind us to be thankful for all the things we have forgotten to be thankful for. Thanksgiving is a time to remind us to reorient our entire lives on the attitude of thankfulness.

In the Jesus Calling devotional for November 20, I read these words from the heart of Jesus:

"Your responsibility is to be receptive to this unconditional love. Thankfulness and trust are your primary receptors. Thank me for everything; trust in me at all times. These simple disciplines will keep you open to my loving presence."

Thanksgiving is not a holiday; it's a lifestyle! When we live in the constant awareness of the reality and intensity of God's love for us, we cannot help but be thankful. Thanksgiving is the fruit that grows out of the rich soil of God's uncontainable, unstoppable love. Our thankful hearts then keep us open to God's presence in our lives because when we are looking for things to be thankful for, we open the doors of our hearts and eyes to see God working in and around us. When we see God, we become aware of His constant presence, and then God's presence sustains in us an even more thankful heart. Get the cycle going, and you won't be able to stop it!

This Thanksgiving, I will join the rest of the country in enjoying a large turkey and counting my many blessings. But I also want to turn it into something more than just a one-time event out of the year to make up for all the days that I haven't been thankful. This Thanksgiving, let's make it a lifestyle. Let's be thankful for our physical/material blessings, but lets also be thankful for Christ and every spiritual blessing that we have in Him (Ephesians 1). Because of His awesome love for us, Thanksgiving is more than a holiday; it's a lifestyle that springs forth from a heart that knows God's love and lives with eyes wide open to see His presence.