“So, we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:18

A few years ago during a particularly difficult season, my wife Pam read the NY Times bestselling book “One Thousand Gifts” by Ann Voskamp.   In it, Ann shares the secret to finding joy in the midst of “deadlines, debt, drama, and even the death of loved ones” and seeks to answer the question: “What does the Christ-life really look like when your days are gritty, long, and sometimes even dark?” And (spoiler alert), the answer, in short, is cultivating a lifestyle of radical gratitude.

After reading the book, Pam took the challenge to start her own year-long gratitude journal to compile a list of 1,000 things she was thankful for.  Most every night for a year, after the hubbub of the day, she’d sit up in bed and by the light of a little reading lamp jot down a few things that she was thankful for that day.  I was impressed- 1,000 things.  That’s a lot of gratitude!  What do you write down after you’ve burned through all the obvious things we so often focus on?  I think I’d get stuck around #203.

Most years, around Thanksgiving, when someone asks me what I’m thankful for, I find myself repeating the same old tropes- family, my health, living in a free country, plenty of food, a warm house, etc.  And when I ask other people, they say similar things.  It’s like dipping into the same old well again and again.  Of course, there’s a lot to be said for this list… especially in a year when so many in Ukraine and around the world have experienced devastating loss or may not have any of these comforts. But if that’s what we say year after year, perhaps our gratefulness has gotten a bit superficial. While still being thankful for our obvious physical blessings, can we maybe dig a little deeper?  The Bible says that “every good gift comes from God above (James 1:17). That’s pretty comprehensive. So, if we work down through our list of blessings, what else can we say? What else has God done? What’s at number 261, 438 or 725?  Can we legitimately get to 1,000?

This year, in addition to all the obvious things, I’m finding myself grateful for God’s many spiritual blessings- good gifts from Him that aren’t rooted in this world, can’t be taken away and are eternal. Blessings that will last forever!

This Thanksgiving, I’m thankful that:

I’m blessed (v. 3)

I’m chosen (v. 4)

I’m loved (v. 4)

I’m adopted (v. 5)

I’m redeemed (v. 7)

I’m forgiven (v. 7)

I’m predestined (v. 11)

I’m included (v. 13)

I’m sealed (v. 13)

I’m rich (v. 18)

I’m powerful (v. 19)

And if you’re a Christian, so are you. All of this is found in only one small chapter in the Bible, Ephesians 1.  We’ve got a lot to be thankful for, don’t we?

So, this year, if someone asks you what you’re thankful for or you’re called to give a prayer before you tuck into that delicious Thanksgiving feast or maybe you’re just taking some time to sit with God and express thanks (on your deer stand!) … branch out, get creative and dig a little deeper.  God gives us “all things.” Think about it and you’ll get to 1,000 in no time.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!