Psalm 100 reminds us to "Enter His gates with thanksgiving." In 1 Thessalonians 5:18, Paul says, "In everything give thanks." A thankful attitude is not circumstantial or seasonal; it is a living part of the Christian life.

We often see and magnify the problems in life. But if we made a list of all our blessings, we would quickly see that life is much better than we thought.

A genuine heart of thankfulness is pure and wonderful. Although the threat of terrorism, war, broken homes, drug addiction, crime, divorce, illness, and many other circumstances are real and frightening, we must not allow ourselves to be robbed of the beauty of God’s peace.

God always provides every good thing for us to enjoy. By being thankful, we focus on His presence, the very throne of grace. Here, the enormity of our problems and the pettiness of what we "don’t have" seem to matter less.

I am reminded of the woman in Luke 7. This woman brought an alabaster jar of precious perfume and poured it all over Jesus. That ointment was very expensive, but we cannot estimate its value to the woman and Jesus. She did this because she was so thankful for Jesus’ love and forgiveness.

We have so many reasons to be thankful. We have been abundantly blessed. When we realize that God is the source of all our blessings, it becomes much easier to be thankful. You see, we don’t deserve any of it. He gives to us by His grace alone.

We hope the spirit of Thanksgiving will survive the season and grow into an ever-living reality in your life.

By: Edmund Brown