“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).
Every year on Thanksgiving Day, we pause to return thanks to God for our many blessings. Just prior to feasting on a sumptuous meal, each person gathered around our abundant table is asked to share at least one thing for which she or he is thankful. I confess that on a few occasions when it was my turn to express thankfulness, I was feeling sad, angry, irritated, depressed, or some other emotion… but thankful was not at the top of the list. Nevertheless, for propriety’s sake, I cognitively identified and voiced a legitimate reason which merited thankfulness. Now I question whether it was hypocritical to render thanks with my voice while my mind was laden with disappointment?
In a similar vein, it seems to me in retrospect that the content of my Thanksgiving homilies delivered while serving as a full-time parish priest often bordered more on scoldings to evoke guilt for a lack of thankfulness rather than joyous gratitude for our blessings. I recall saying things like “Think about all the things you have and all of the other people in this world who have nothing” and “Be grateful for what you have rather than focusing on what is missing in your life.” Although the statements are essentially valid, they serve to evoke guilt rather than genuine gratitude, and guilt is a poor motivator for truly giving thanks.
With the approach of Thanksgiving in the United States this year, I’ve spent time in reflection regarding authentic gratitude and am beginning to discover there’s a difference between giving thanks and having a thankful heart. I’m also beginning to discover that the God cares more about thankfulness that flows from the inside out rather than an imposed obedience of gratitude. Basically… my question is whether God wants outward compliance or a heart capable of expressing guiltless or imposed thankfulness? The answer, of course, is obvious. God desires more than mere obedience—God desires unconditional thankfulness freely flowing from our hearts as prayers of joy and gratitude regardless of life situations.
While carefully reading 1 Thessalonians 5:18, I discovered the passage reads “IN everything give thanks…” not “FOR everything give thanks…” The truth is, I am not thankful “for” everything but I can still be thankful “in” everything. That may seem insignificant to some but it has helped me to see that although I may not be able to give thanks “for” every situation, I can still give thanks “in” every situation. A good illustration of this can be found in the life of Saint Seraphim of Sarov. After being robbed he said: “Let me be thankful, because although they took my belongings, they did not take my life; and, because it was I who was robbed, not I who felt it necessary to rob.”
My prayer is to become ever aware that true thankfulness comes from the heart, not from fleeting emotions and ever-changing circumstances of life. May you have a happy and blessed Thanksgiving!
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