gratitude Archives - Sharla Fritz
November 23, 2021

One More Reason to Be Thankful

Thanksgiving is upon us. Maybe you can hardly wait for the roasted turkey and cranberry stuffing. Or perhaps you dread the holidays. Or maybe you’re struggling to find a reason to be thankful.

Perhaps you even feel thanksgiving is a bit passe. I mean all year long we hear about keeping gratitude journals. Experts continually tout the benefits of feeling thankful. And you feel like–enough is enough. What is so great about thanksgiving anyway?

One More Reason

Perhaps Psalm 95:2 tells us the biggest perk of thanksgiving:

Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise! Psalm 95:2

The experts tell us that gratitude improves our physical and psychological health. Psychologists claim it will enhance your sleep and self-esteem. But if you need one more reason to be thankful, God says thanksgiving will usher us into His presence. What could be better than that?

All year long, I’ve been trying to notice God more in my everyday life. I want to see Him not only in the sacred hour of Sunday worship or the momentous events of life. I want to see Him on an ordinary Tuesday morning, a gloomy Thursday afternoon. I want to see Him while I’m typing at my computer or playing my piano. And sometimes I struggle with this.

However, I’ve found one sure way of discovering God in my everyday world:

Discover at least one thing to be grateful for.

Thanksgiving = Awareness

Somehow the simple act of thanking God makes me aware of His nearness. When I say “Thank you” for the Honeycrisp apple I ate for lunch, I remember His creativity. When I express gratitude for the encouraging words a friend texted me yesterday, I recall His care. When I thank Him for women who regularly join me for Bible study, I rejoice in His gift of sisters in Christ.

And all of it brings me into His company.

Of course, we know we should be thankful for the gifts God has given us. He grants us food and drink, home and family. He graciously gives us forgiveness and salvation through His Son, Jesus. So yes, we want to express our gratitude to the great Provider.

But if you need one more reason to practice thanksgiving, remember Psalm 95:2: Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving.

Filed Under: Spiritual Growth Tagged With: ,
November 9, 2021

How Gratitude Changes Us

gratitude
John Milton said, 
Gratitude bestows reverence, allowing us to experience everyday epiphanies.

Gratitude changes me. Thankfulness helps me remember that everything I have is from God. He gives the gifts of faith, love, and even a sunny day in November. Gratitude definitely inspires reverence.

Milton also said gratitude allows us to experience epiphanies. My dictionary gives two definitions for epiphany:

  • a moment when you suddenly see or understand something in a new way
  • an appearance or manifestation, especially of a divine being

Thankfulness enables us to see our everyday lives in a new way. We can complain about snow on the ground or we thank God for its beauty. We can gripe about the toys all over the family room or be grateful the children in our lives that put them there.

Thankfulness helps us to “see” God. Of course, God is always with us. But our busy, messy lives often crowd out our awareness of Him. A small prayer of gratitude even in the midst of a chaotic morning is enough to “manifest” His presence to our spirits.

The apostle Paul wrote:

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.

Colossians 3:15

Could it be that one way to let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts is to be grateful? That as we stop to say thanks we push out a bit of discontent from our hearts and make room for peace?

This week is a national celebration of Thanksgiving. At overcrowded tables all over the country, people will stop to give thanks.

Let’s carry that attitude of thanksgiving throughout the year. As we do, we will see our lives in a new way. We will discover God in the mundane corners of our days.

Next step: This week, remember to thank God for the mundane and ordinary. Say a small prayer of gratitude and experience God’s transforming power.

howgratitudechangesus

Filed Under: Spiritual Growth Tagged With:
November 24, 2020

Learning To Give Thanks When It’s Easy And When It’s Not

psalm106-1

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever! Psalm 106:1

Sometimes it’s easy to say those words. Sometimes it’s easy to be thankful. Life is good. Everyone is healthy. There is enough money in the bank account to pay the bills

But sometimes it isn’t so easy to be grateful.

For us, the year 2015 was one of those times when my husband, John, was diagnosed with lymphoma. Although the doctors kept trying to reassure us with phrases like, “If you have to have cancer, lymphoma is the best kind to get,” we weren’t too sure. Life seemed very fragile and uncertain.

Life with cancer was hard enough to deal with, but it was made even more difficult by the fact that our children do not live close enough to lend support on that tough road. My daughter and her family live in China. My son and his wife live in the next state. It wasn’t like either of them could drop by for dinner and a hug. They couldn’t sit with my husband at his chemotherapy appointment.

Some days it was difficult to live with a grateful attitude.

How could I thank God for cancer? How could I be grateful that my family wasn’t near enough to physically support us?

That’s when I have to remember the truth of 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

I highlighted that little word in because that is the key to giving thanks when it is not easy.

learning to give thanks

But we can still be thankful in the midst of painful circumstances. While my husband battled lymphoma, I was grateful for God’s Word that continued to comfort me. I thanked God for friends who supported us and for the medical personnel who were doing everything they could to make my husband well again.

When you’re in a season where it isn’t easy to be grateful, thank God for the eternal things that will never change: His love and His Word. Find little things to be thankful for: the smile of a friend, the beauty of the fall leaves.

Thankfully ten months after my husband’s diagnosis and three months after chemotherapy, his cancer went into remission and he is doing much better.

Once more it’s easy to be thankful.

 

I’m thankful for friends, for a comfortable home, and for work I love.

I’m thankful for the little things like radiant sunrises, warm sweaters, and Carrot Cake Coffee.

Most of all, I’m thankful for God’s goodness. I’m grateful for His steadfast love. Because even if I didn’t have any of the other things I listed above, I know I would always have those. The psalmist reminds me, “His steadfast love endures forever.”

I pray that God will cultivate gratitude in my heart–gratitude that is not dependent on my circumstances. That I will be able to thank Him for His eternal blessings no matter how life on earth is shaping up.

Next step: Make a list of the earthly blessings you are thankful for this year. Then make another list–a list of the spiritual blessings you have that cannot be taken away. I’ll get you started: God’s love, Christ’s redemptive work on the cross, the Holy Spirit’s abiding presence. If you like, write some of your blessings in the comments below!

 

Filed Under: Spiritual Growth Tagged With:
March 13, 2018

Practicing Lent: Gratitude

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Every week a dozen young people pass through my home for piano lessons. I help little fingers push black and white keys so that they make beautiful music. At the end of each lesson–if the student has reached the practice goals–I give him or her a small prize.

And every week the parents remind their children, “What do you say?”

“Thank you.”

Why do we always have to be reminded to say thank you?

When Jesus healed the ten lepers in the Bible, only one returned to say, “Thank you” (Luke 17:11-19).

In the Old Testament, King Jehoshaphat appointed a special group of people to sing to the Lord and to remind the people of Israel, “Give thanks to the Lord, for His steadfast love endures forever” (1 Chronicles 20:20-21).

The Bible reminds all of us to say, “Thank you.” The book of Psalms alone has fourteen verses with the command, “Give thanks to the Lord.”

I, too, need reminders. My prayers more often resemble a to-do list for God than a litany of thanks.

Often I take God’s blessings for granted. As I write this, I am especially thankful for my furnace. My daughter lives in a part of China where they do not have central heat. Even though they have space heaters, sometimes the temperature in their apartment only gets up to 54 degrees! Here in Chicago, the temperature outside today is only 20 degrees. Without our furnace, we would be shivering. Yet, I often forget to thank God for the luxury of central heat.

practicingP18-5

The Spiritual Discipline of Gratitude is another form of prayer. This discipline opens my eyes to all the blessings God has already given. It helps me appreciate God as the Giver of Blessings and to remember His generous, loving character. Instead of continually wanting more, I find I have enough. Gratitude leads to contentment.

Here are some simple ways to practice Gratitude this week:

  • Keep a gratitude journal. Each day, write down three things for which you are thankful.
  • Thank God for the little things. Thank Him for your furnace (or your air conditioner, depending on what you need today!). As you go through your day, thank Him for your comfortable bed, your coffee maker, your amazing cell phone.
  • Use social media. Use this modern tool for good! Each day post a picture of something you are thankful for.
  • Try Bible journaling. Record prayers of thanksgiving in the margins of your Bible next to verses on giving thanks. Put a date beside the prayers as a record of God’s faithfulness throughout your life.
  • Make your own gratitude psalm. Read Psalm 136 and use it as a model to thank God for all He has done in your life.

I pray that I will not be like my piano students who need to be reminded every week to say, “Thank you.” God has given me so many blessings. May I forever praise Him for His gift of eternal life. May I thank Him for His abiding presence. May I express my gratitude for gifts large and small.

Next step: Download this resource with Scriptures about gratitude. Read and meditate on these verses. Decide how you would like to practice this Spiritual discipline this week. If you choose to keep a gratitude journal, the resource has a place for you to record your thanksgiving.

Filed Under: Spiritual Disciplines Tagged With: ,
April 19, 2016

7 Habits That Promote Soul Rest: Gratitude

gratitude-soulrest

A few years ago I was part of women’s Bible study group in another church. As part of the study book we were doing, we were all encouraged to keep a gratitude journal. Every day for a week we were instructed to write down at least three things we were thankful for.

One of the women in the group was skeptical on how this exercise was going to help. She was going through a difficult time in life. Financial problems. Work problems. Family problems. How was writing down three things on a piece of paper going to help her?

But the next week she came back with a smile. She reported, “I can’t believe how much the gratitude journal changed my perspective on life. I didn’t think it would make any difference. But simply finding three small things to thank God for every day transformed my attitude.”

The habit of gratitude is, without a doubt, a practice that inspires soul rest.

7 HABITS #2So much of the turmoil and unrest I experience come from discontent, envy, and comparison. When I look at the fabulous career of a friend, I feel a twinge of jealousy. When I work hard, but success seems just out of reach, I complain. When friends talk about spending time with their families while my daughter lives halfway around the world in China, my happiness melts away.

But when I deliberately choose gratitude, my perspective is transformed. It’s my natural inclination to stay in the cellar of discontent and grumble. (I’ve even been known to throw a pity party down there). Often, I can’t even take the first step of gratitude on my own. I need the Holy Spirit to give me the strength to say, “Thank You.” Each thank you becomes a step on a staircase out of the cellar of discouragement and despair.

So how can we develop a habit of gratitude? Here are a few ways:

Start a gratitude journal. Buy a pretty journal or grab an empty spiral notebook. Every day write down three things that made you smile, that you’ve taken for granted, or that gave a moment of joy. Like my Bible study group, try the gratitude experiment for a week and see what a difference it can make.

Use a commonplace cue. I recently turned my frustration with stop lights into a cue for gratitude. Every time I’m forced to stop at a red light I use the time to thank God for the many blessings He gives. What everyday occurrence could you use as a signal to give thanks? Walking through your front door? Pouring a cup of coffee?

Make the decision to be grateful. When you find yourself in the cellar of discontent–don’t stay there! Immediately make the decision to get out through the stairway of gratitude. When my friend talks about her fabulous career, I can thank God for the writing work He has given me. When I hear about families spending holidays together, I can be grateful that my family is close at heart if not in miles.

Psalm 100:4 says:

Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!

Thanksgiving leads us into God’s presence. And in His presence, we find soul rest.

Thanksgiving leads us into God's presence. And in His presence, we find soul rest. Click To Tweet

Next step: Choose one of the gratitude habits to implement this week. Perhaps use sticky notes in strategic places to remind you to write in a gratitude journal, use commonplace cues, or to make the decision to be grateful.

 

Filed Under: Spiritual Disciplines Tagged With: