A Thankful Heart

I'm not sure if you know but there's this little holiday on Thursday called Thanksgiving. It's been celebrated as a national holiday for around a hundred and fifty years. It's a day in which all work stops, people take a time to rest, reflect, make delicious food, and take the time to articulate what they're thankful for. That's the vision. Unfortunately, we've really fallen far from that vision over the past few decades.

Now, Thanksgiving is seen as a holiday off from work, when people watch football games and parades, make a lot of food, overeat, and then strategically plan where they're going to shop on Friday. Now, this model might not hit everyone, but I bet you can relate to this new model of Thanksgiving. The actual act of giving thanks has been lost. 

And I am one of the culprits.

It's so easy to have so much but be grateful for so little. 

Giving thanks isn't just a one day thing. It's a way of life. It's a heart check. 

If I'm honest, I don't have a thankful heart. If I did, my prayers and my thoughts would look a lot different. Thankfulness and even gratefulness lead to contentment, joy, and peace. But I often am not content. I'm often not joyful. I'm often not at peace. 

I often forget that I have the greatest Hope and reason for being thankful and grateful. 

With all that I've been freely given, I really desire to have a thankful heart. I want to live thanks and give thanks. I want to live out Psalm 9:1.

I will give thanks to the Lord with my WHOLE HEART. I will recount all of your wonderful deeds. 

I want to intentionally be thankful, but it starts with my heart. 

So today I'm praying for a thankful heart. A heart that gives thanks for what God has given me before it asks for more. Will you join me in praying for a thankful heart and intentionally being thankful?