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Day 8: Meaning of Thanks

What does it mean to be thankful?  To show gratitude?  We’re taught from an early age that ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ are like magic words, usually helping you gain something.  As an adult, I have learned to say it as a polite reply but I don’t tend to give it a lot of thought in terms of the sincerity I should be trying to express.  The flippant use of these magic words led me to do a little soul searching (and Google searching) for a deeper meaning in what being grateful should mean.  In my search, I read a very simple but powerful statement covering thankfulness: 

“Put simply, thankfulness is recognizing good things that have happened to you, and acknowledging the people who made those good things happen …

In the Bible, thankfulness is recognizing who God is and what he has done.”


I love the statement about God.  I tend to pair giving thanks and being grateful solely with things and people; my surroundings.  I am often at fault for not simply being thankful for who God is.  He is my Creator, the Almighty … the Alpha and the Omega.  The beginning and the end.  He is why I’m here.  I am a bit amazed that I’ve had this oversight in my journey towards living with a grateful heart.  I have been focused on giving thanks for what surrounds me and leaving out an integral part of who created those surroundings.  What a God we have.  As I move forward, I pray God continues to remind me of Him; of who He is … as well as all He has given me.  #livewithagratefulheart #lent2017 #40daysgrateful
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