Pastor's Perspective for November

Our lives are often marked by griping more than by gratitude. Take this typical husband-and-wife joke:         

Wife: If you had to do it all over again, would you still marry me?

Husband: I guess so. If I had to.

It seems as if some people just need something to complain about. I once knew a woman who was so negative that I said to myself, “If she was given a gold brick from Fort Knox, she’d find a scratch in it!”

The Apostle Paul was no stranger to adversity, but he gave some surprising advice about how to pray in times of trouble: “Don’t worry about anything, but in all your prayers ask God for what you need, always asking him with a thankful heart.” Philippians 4:6

It may not always be easy to find something to be grateful for. It is not unusual for us to have days when it seems as if everything is going wrong. But it is impossible, short of dying, for everything to go wrong. And even when someone dies, the prospect for that person is that for the first time, everything is about to go right – perfectly and eternally. And for those they leave behind, the fact that death is a victory rather than a defeat can be a very comforting thought.

Maybe that is why we have Thanksgiving in November rather than in June. It’s not hard to feel grateful in the middle of Summer when “the cotton is high and the livin’ is easy.” It’s much harder to give thanks when Winter is staring you in the face. Regardless of what the circumstances may be, it’s a good thing to remember that there is always something to be thankful for and Someone to be thankful to.