The Struggle to Be Grateful.

 

  It's the eve before Thanksgiving but lately, I can't help but feel ingratitude seeping into my heart. I've become so focused on the things I don't have or the things I have that I don't want. I find that when I am dwelling too much on my dreams and goals versus current reality, I am more ungrateful for current circumstances. I just want to be out of this limbo period of life or have a better job or have enough money to go to grad school and find a home of my own. When I focus too much on what I want, I don't appreciate what I have though. I realize that when you become ungrateful you can literally begin to feel this weight on your chest or find that the sentences you speak to others become shorter and sharper. Yesterday morning, I was reminded how important it is to actively catch ourselves when we are dwelling on the things we desire that we don't have. While it's okay to have goals and dreams, we still need to look at the things that are in front of us and appreciate them. When we forget to notice the good things around us, our vision becomes blinded to what we have because we are too focused to what we don't have.
  As followers of Christ we are told numerous times to be thankful, 1 Thessalonians 5:18, tells us to "give thanks in all circumstances". Colossians 3:15, tells us to let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts and be thankful. We are told throughout the Psalms in  Psalm 118:1-8 , Psalm 106:1,  and Psalm 105:1 and many other Psalms to give thanks to the Lord. I've had to remind myself recently that at the core of my giving thanks, I should be giving thanks for Christ. As I give thanks for Christ and become more in awe of him and what he has done for me, I can begin to see the other good that God had allowed to enter in my life. Because at the end of our lives will it matter that we had a brief period of limbo? A period of financial stresses and dreams put on hold? No, I don't think it will. What will matter is whether we spent our time cultivating a spirit of gratitude in the midsts of disappointments and confusions or let the disappointments and confusions get the best of us and rob us of joy.

  If you want to cultivate a spirit of gratitude, start by looking at Jesus. Give thanks for him and ask God to help you become more amazed by him. The more amazed you become by Jesus, the more appreciative you become of things in life.

Have a great Thanksgiving!