Thanksgiving

Before you run out and overindulge in the seasonal delicacies of most tables around this time of year, do a double-take and offer a sincere word of gratitude to God for the gifts you have received.
Gratitude is the first motivation for thanksgiving, but our generation has been so overly indulged that we too often forget to be grateful for such abundance. The danger for most of us is the simple failure to respond to the reality of our blessings, the experience of our daily provisions, and the mind to recognize the stewardship we are engaged in as we use these daily gifts.
A big part of the pleasure we can derive from abundance is in perceiving the joy of giving and sharing. The struggles of many to achieve a sense of confidence in that daily bread and daily shelter is bewildering to watch when more than abundance is recognizable. Satisfaction is not by definition an outcome of abundance. In fact, many who have little and many who have nothing, derive satisfaction in life, not from things, but from relationships.
What measure of satisfaction do you derive from your things? What about relationships? Could things sometimes prevent relationships from being all they should be? Do relationships suffer when things become the basis for having relationships?
Could there be some benefit in engaging one another with no expectation of “stuff”, but rather for the joy derived from knowing and understanding another human being. Sharing life may be more satisfying in the long haul as a factor of connectedness…investment in conversation and openness to others…the engagement derived from shared experiences.
Thanksgiving is great in acknowledging the many blessings of things, but more important are the experience of shared joy, mutual trust, open and engaging friendships, life lived with others alongside us, sharing our best one with another. That’s a gift to give and to receive. That’s a reason for thanksgiving all year long.