I hope your Thanksgiving was a good one. Mine was. I spent lunch at Faith Mission in the serving line. My 2-year-old twin granddaughters passed out the rolls. It was a trick trying to keep them from taking a bite every now and then.
I know that they don’t fully get it yet, but I want to start early teaching them not only to be thankful, but also to be generous. They are both Biblical virtues that seem to go hand in hand. Most thankful people I know are generous and most generous people are thankful.
I have always been taught that everything we have comes from God. James 1:17 says, “Every good and perfect comes from above.”
When we have that mindset and believe the truth that God is our provider, it is hard to be stingy and ungrateful. I’m not saying its impossible, but when we have the mind of Christ, it will be natural to be thankful and generous.
That is what I want for my granddaughters. The mind of Christ. I hope that as they serve and see their mommy serve, they will fall in love with being generous and thankful. It will just come natural for them.
Another thing I notice every year at our Thanksgiving meal is how thankful our guests are. It is almost embarrassing. Here many of them are, eating thanksgiving lunch at a homeless shelter, yet they are telling me how grateful they are that I took the time to serve them. I have to duck out occasionally and wipe away the tears.
I can’t explain it, but it happens every year. Those without a lot are thankful for what they do have. I’ll tell you the truth. I realized a long time ago that the men, women and children at our shelters have a lot to teach me. And one of those things is being thankful for what I have. Even if it’s not as much as someone else has. God gave it to me for my own good, to use for His Kingdom. How could I not appreciate that?
