How to be thankful year-round
Thanksgiving is just around the corner! I’m very excited to eat lots of food, relax, and spend time with family. Every year when Thanksgiving rolls around, we’re reminded to be thankful for everything we have. The holiday is a great reminder to slow down and reflect on the past year. But as Christians, we are called to be thankful all year round – not just over Thanksgiving.
The word thanks appears in the Bible over 70 times, thanksgiving about 30 times, and thank just under 30 times as well. It is clear that God finds being thankful very important!
However, if you’re anything like me, remembering how to be thankful all year round can be difficult! I wanted to help us all out by putting together some ideas on how to cultivate a heart full of thanksgiving.
1) Pursue Gratitude
We all seemed to be programmed to want more, faster, better, or easier. When a new model of something comes out we want it right away – even if nothing was wrong with the old one. We do this with phones, cars, computers, and even friendships!
What would it look like to just be thankful for what we already have – instead of going and replacing something? If we truly pursue gratitude in our lives it will turn what we have into enough.
2) Recognize Others’ Acts Of Service And Say Thank You
This is one thing I have personally been trying to implement more in my life. If a coworker empties our office dishwasher, I try to make a point of thanking them for doing so. Or if my husband does the laundry, I’ll make sure to thank him for that.
Think about how you feel when someone recognizes your act of service. It feels great to get recognized for something you did even if it was small. Why don’t we all try to give more thanks for the small tasks we see others doing.
Words of appreciation can go a long way, even if it is a task that someone does every day. When I am talking to my realtor, I make sure to let him know how much I appreciate his quick responses to my questions. Try to notice those small acts of service around you – even if that person is paid to provide that service!
3) Turn Every Blessing Into Praise
Most of you probably know the song Blessed Be Your Name by Matt Redman. I love the lyrics he has in that song – “Every blessing you pour out I’ll turn back to praise.” It is a great reminder for us. Once we recognize a blessing that we have been given we need to thank God for it.
As we know, everything we have comes from God. He is the rightful owner of everything in our life.
Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.
James 1:17
If you recognize a blessing in the middle of the day, give a quick prayer of praise to our great God! Get in the habit of giving him thanks throughout the day. When we start to recognize the big blessings in our lives, our eyes begin to open to all of the smaller blessings we are given as well.
4) List 5 Things You’re Thankful For Before You Go To Sleep
I wanted to end on a more practical note. This is something that you can very easily implement into your life now and really make into a habit!
It doesn’t require a lot of effort either. Think about the day you just had and pick out 5 things (if you have more don’t limit yourself!) that you are thankful for.
It could be something that happened to you or a person you just met, or maybe your spouse did the dishes that day. Think about those five things and thank God for them.
When you do this, the last thing you will think about at night was not how angry you got at a customer – but the good things that happened. It will leave you in a better mood, give you better sleep, and in the morning you will start out more refreshed.
Food For Thought:
♦ If you were to wake up tomorrow with only the things you thanked God for today, what would you be left with?
♦ It’s not happy people who are grateful, but grateful people who are happy.
♦ “God has promised to supply all our needs. What we don’t have now, we don’t need now.” –Elizabeth Elliot
Recognize the things you are thankful for this year on Thanksgiving. Go forward from the holiday with an attitude of thankfulness and gratitude.
These are awesome ways to account for all of our blessings year round. I especially like listing the 5 things because it sort of encompasses the other three in the process. My entire mentality changes when I begin recognizing all of the things I have to be grateful for.