G. K. Chesterton, a brilliant Christian apologist, once suggested, “Gratitude is the mother of all virtues.” Indeed, a thankful spirit may be the most vital character trait of the Christian life.
One reason is that Gratitude pleases God. Hebrews 12:28, in the Living Bible, reads, “Since we have a Kingdom nothing can destroy, let us please God by serving him with thankful hearts and with holy fear and awe.”
Almost every parent and grandparent knows the thrill that comes when a child is sincerely grateful for a meaningful gift. After sharing an expensive Christmas toy, all we need to hear is, “Thanks, mom! This is great!” Or, “Thanks, Pop! I’ve always wanted one of these!” and our hearts are warmed.
Our Heavenly Father is pleased when we give thanks to Him as the giver of every good and perfect gift. The Bible makes it clear that our God eventually loses patience when His people, like the Israelites in the wilderness, constantly gripe and complain. But the opposite is true also – “God inhabits the praise of His people” (Psalm 22:3 KJV).
Gratitude is important because it is the key to personal happiness. We often mistakenly imagine that happiness is solely a result of external circumstances. While present circumstances play a significant role in our sense of well-being, the more we observe life, the more obvious it becomes that happiness flows more from choosing a thankful heart than from favorable circumstances. The Bible commands, “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians. 5:16-18).
Consider the first Thanksgiving. Would we have rejoiced and given thanks in November of 1621? From our perspective, the Pilgrims had much to complain about and very little to be thankful for. Forty-five of the 102 Mayflower passengers had died in the first brutal winter, and most of the settlers were grieving the loss of family members. They were living in primitive huts with no inside plumbing, no electricity, no television, no cell phones, no microwaves, no internet, and no Amazon to deliver wanted goods the next day.
Yet those underprivileged settlers were grateful they had survived. The first harvest had produced sufficient crops for them to have a realistic hope of making it through the second winter. They had established communication with some of the native Americans, and the fear of a hostile attack from them had abated. So, they praised God for His providential care. Their circumstances were not ideal, yet their hearts were overflowing with gratitude. The early settlers were a happy group that first Thanksgiving.
Gratitude is crucial because it provides the moral foundation of a stable culture. The first chapter of the book of Romans documents the final stages of a dying civilization. A culture wheezing its last is characterized by spiritual defiance, sexual perversion, and the breakdown of law and order. The “God-haters” are “filled with every kind of wickedness” and “are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice” (Romans 1:29).
However, the preceding paragraph describes the reason for the decline, “For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools” (Romans 1:21-22).
America’s first settlers knew God and gave thanks to him. A little more than 200 years after the first Thanksgiving, our forefathers etched “Laus Deo,” translated to “Praise be to God,” on the top of the Washington Monument. But over the years, Americans have become proud and oblivious to God’s providence. It seems that now our “thinking has become futile, and our foolish hearts darkened” to the point we are endorsing sexual perversion and experiencing political chaos. We have become so spiritually numb a majority of our states are voting in favor of killing unborn babies. We have become such fools that even Ivy League graduates sitting on the Supreme Court cannot define the difference between a man and a woman.
The hope for America’s future does not lie in the 2024 election. Our only hope lies in a spirit of genuine repentance and thanksgiving. The Lord still “inhabits the praise of His people.” God would have spared Sodom and Gomorrah for ten righteous people. I believe the reason God’s wrath may be restrained at this point is due to a remnant of righteous people who continue to cry out to Him for mercy and thank Him for His grace.
An annual Thanksgiving tradition in the Russell household is to pause before Thanksgiving meal and pass around “The Blessing Pot.” My wife initiated the custom more than thirty years ago and reestablishes it every year despite occasional murmurs of “Oh, not again!” Yet it is a valuable tradition that gives our family roots and serves as a positive reminder to “count [our] blessings and name them one by one.” The Blessing Pot is just a tiny cup filled with grains of corn. It is passed around for everyone to take one kernel. It is then passed around a second time, but as it stops at each person, they are asked to express a special blessing that God has provided within the past year before placing the kernel of corn back into the pot. That simple tradition often brings tears and always serves as a reminder to thank the One from whom all blessings flow.
Let us all try to make our Thanksgiving Day prayers this Thursday more than a superficial, “God is great, God is good. Let us thank Him for our food.” Take a few moments to lead your family in pouring out your heart to God in genuine repentance and a heartfelt prayer for our nation that we may once again become “One nation, under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all.”
For that, we would be most grateful.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
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