What Was Missing

Every year is filled with highs and lows. Though, as a pastor and Christian writer, most expect me to put a positive spin on everything, to look at everything as positive in some way, I am honest. There are seasons and spans of times where even I am simply trying to stay alive and draw that next breath. Life can be overwhelming. The statement doesn't reveal some hidden lack of faith, but rather is an honest assessment of what we all face on a daily basis. Some seasons are filled with joy after joy. Other seasons, pain and frustrations leave their marks, a stabbing of the soul that only time and a renewed vision can heal.

Thanksgiving has just passed. Though the week is most definitely one of the busiest of the year, it is nonetheless one of the most fulfilling. Thanksgiving services bring about a focus on what we have been blessed with, the simple joys and blessings that we often overlook. There are times for family and friends. We make a point to verbalize what we are thankful for, the blessings that mean so much to us. And in that, we reconnect with what is missing throughout the rest of the year.

Psalm 100 is a well-known psalm that is preached at Thanksgiving. In the psalm, we see what it looks like to be truly thankful. Evidence of gratitude is found in our shouts of triumph, in our service to God, and in our acknowledgment of who He is and what He has done. In Psalm 100:4, we read, "Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name." (Psalm 100:4 HCSB).

There is no single day mentioned in the passage. Never does the writer of the psalm say that we should be thankful only on Sundays or just at Thanksgiving, but rather, always enter with thanksgiving. In that attitude, we find what was missing because we were created to praise, we are expected to be thankful for what God has done, and we find that we are fulfilled as we think about all the blessings of our lives.

What are you thankful for today? What is it today that you want to stop and express gratitude for realizing that though it is here today, it could be gone tomorrow? The world has plenty enough complaining taking place. What will make the world take note is to begin to hear Christians praising every day, not just on good days, not just at holidays, but every day and in all situations. When we begin our day with thanksgiving to God, we are starting the day off on the right foot. He didn't have to give us today. This day is a gift. The very life we have been given is a gift straight from our Creator.

Think about this. If you know Jesus, you have eternity to be thankful for today and every day. As Lamentations 3:22-24 teaches us that the Lord's mercies are new every day, therefore we can be thankful for mercy today! Look at your family and be thankful. Take note of your friends and express the appreciation they may need to hear today. For the roof over your head, the food on your table, the shoes on your feet, and the air that you breathe, take a moment to thank God. Those who are thankful are those who are the most fulfilled in their lives because rather than focusing on what they do not have, they take note of all they do have.

What is often missing in our lives is not a possession that will bring fulfillment, but rather an attitude of gratitude that reminds us of all we have and the reminder brings an overwhelming sense of fulfillment. Don't let thankfulness end with Thanksgiving Day. Carry it on every day and see how it changes the course of your life!