Giving Thanks

             Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name. “But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand. We are foreigners and strangers in your sight, as were all our ancestors. Our days on earth are like a shadow, without hope. Lord our God, all this abundance that we have provided for building you a temple for your Holy Name comes from your hand, and all of it belongs to you. (I Chronicles 29:13-16)

 

            David wasn’t allowed to build the temple, but he collected for it, and when the collection was over, he was – at least according to what he prayed – amazed. I’ll grant you, David seems to have been the sort who was easily amazed, but I suspect we’d be amazed, too. I’ve heard stories about the church I attend up north and people mortgaging their homes to provide the funds to build the new sanctuary (many years ago.) I’m not suggesting this is good financial management or that you should do the same – I’m just saying that when people want to, they can be generous to a fault.

            There’s one area in which I think we’re particularly jaded about giving: thanks and praise. We may say, “Thanks” as someone holds the door open, but how much gratitude do we feel? Ten seconds after we say it, will we remember our sense of gratitude? Or is that expression of thanks just a habit? If it is just a habit, are we lying when we say it? The same question might be asked of our thanking God for the food we are about to eat, or anything else. It’s not a bad custom, but is it more than a custom? Would you thank God for a couple of burnt pieces of toast with as much attention as you would for a four-course meal made by a famous chef?

            I’m not saying that our gratitude for something needs to be all-out for everything. We don’t need to do a Broadway production to thank someone for holding a door. All I’m really suggesting is that we “open our eyes” and be present when expressing our gratitude. Take the time, even if it’s five seconds, to savor being grateful instead of just setting our bodies on autopilot. And maybe tomorrow, I'll actually look at what David said.