Remembering to Give Thanks

Read: Psalm 103; Luke 17:11-17

Praise the Lord, my soul;
    all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Praise the Lord, my soul,
    and forget not all his benefits—   (Ps. 103:1-2)

One of the greatest, and most detrimental, drawbacks to living in this current technology-driven age of ‘instant everything’ is, it seems to me, the radical shortening of our attention-span, and, with it, our memory. We have become so obsessed with taking in as much information, and having as many different experiences, as quickly as possible that we are losing our ability to step out of the moment in order to analyse the information that we take in, or reflect on the significance of the experiences we’ve had. When we don’t take time to reflect on our experiences, we are less likely to learn from them, and much less likely to be grateful for them.

Today’s Bible readings indicate that the propensity for people to forget about the blessings that God pours into their lives is not just a present-day phenomenon. The psalm-writer had to remind himself, “forget not all [God’s] benefits.”  And, of the ten people with leprosy who Jesus heals in Luke, Chapter 17, only one remembered to come back and say “Thank you.” These passages thus convey a clear link between a lack of reflection caused by a short attention span and a lack of gratitude for the multitude of blessings, small and huge, that God pours into our lives on a daily basis.

Gracious Heavenly Father, Please forgive me for my propensity to let my busyness and my consequently minuscule attention span prevent me from recognizing the multitude of blessings that You lavish on me day by day. Sharpen my perception and expand my memory that I may develop an attitude of gratitude for the life that You have given me. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Thanksgiving: Our Not-So-Secret Weapon

Read: Joshua 6:1-20

On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have the whole army give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the army will go up, everyone straight in." (Joshua 6:4-5)

I grew up in church listening to various pastors and speakers encourage their listeners to cultivate an attitude of gratitude, because thankfulness is a key characteristic that ought to distinguish Christ-followers from the majority of people around them. And, in fact, I discovered early on in my life that people who are genuinely thankful for what God has given them are a whole lot more likely to have positive outlook on life, which, in turn, equips them to deal with future difficulties and challenges. Not only are habitually thankful people better equipped to deal with difficulties that come into their own lives, they are often uniquely positioned to come alongside others who are also dealing with challenges. Conversely, people who constantly dwell on their difficulties tend to isolate themselves, thus greatly impeding their capacity to either receive support and encouragement from others, or be a source of support and encouragement to others.

Something else that I learned about thankfulness early on in my life is that genuine, God-centered thankfulness is not dependent on favourable external circumstances, such as good health, financial security, thriving relationships, etc. Rather, it flows out of a faith in, and experience of, a Gracious and Loving Heavenly Father, who is able to pour abundant blessings of love and peace into our lives, even in the midst of great adversity and turmoil. When I look back over the past year in my own life, I see once again that, although this was a year of many deep losses and unprecedented DRAMA (read: stress and distress), it was also a year in which I witnessed God’s miraculous provision in ways that I had never before experienced.

In re-reading the Old Testament story of Israel’s capture of Jericho, I find myself intrigued by the question of what, exactly, it was that the Israelite army shouted that caused the wall of the city to crumble before them? The text does not provide this detail, but, from reading stories of other Israelite conquests in the Old Testament, I am led to strongly suspect that it was a shout of thanksgiving that sent the great wall of Jericho a tumblin’ down!

Gracious Heavenly Father – I confess that, when I am faced with seasons of adversity and turmoil, thankfulness is usually the furthest thing from my mind and heart. But during those times, may I remember all the ways that You have graciously and miraculously provided for me in the past. And may I thus find the courage to move forward with a triumphal shout of thanksgiving. In Jesus’ Name. Amen. 

Created Crip, or Created TAB, You Were Created to Serve

Read: Ephesians 2:1-10

For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (Ephesians 2:10)

For many of us who have disabilities or chronic illnesses, there is often a strong temptation to become so preoccupied with our own day-to-day challenges that we begin to feel like we’re destined to perpetually be on the receiving end of acts of service, rather than being capable of offering meaningful acts of service to others. When this kind of thinking becomes ingrained, it can lead to bouts of depression, as we begin to internalize the messages that we receive from the society and culture around us–messages which tell us that our lives can only be a burden, both to us and to those around us. People with disabilities who internalize these kinds of negative messages can often become convinced that our limitations render us incapable of helping or being of service to others in any kind of meaningful way. When we begin to think this way, it becomes very easy to sink into depression over our perceived uselessness.

The Bible reading for today offers, I think, a very effective encouragement to Christian crips–of all types–who struggle with feelings of uselessness and consequent depression. In this passage, the Apostle Paul makes it clear that all Christians, crip and TAB alike, are “created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” As far as God is concerned, having disabilities does not disqualify anyone from being of service to others. In fact, it’s been my experience, and the experience of many other Christians with disabilities, that God will actually use both our positive and our negative experiences of living with disabilities to minister in unique ways to other people, those who have disabilities themselves, and those who don’t–yet.

Gracious Lord Jesus, I confess that, too often, I let myself be too influenced by a society which tells me that my disabilities and limitations make it impossible for me to be anything other than a burden to others, and even to myself. When this happens, Lord, please remind me that this is not the way You see me, for You not only created me to do good works, but even prepared in advance the good works that You would have me do. Please help me to recognize those good works that You’ve prepared for me, and to engage in them wholeheartedly, for others’ good and for Your glory. Amen.