Gratitude in Action

Thanksgiving encourages people to pause and reflect on what they are grateful for. In a world where there is so much divisiveness, anger, and hurt, taking time to acknowledge the good in our personal lives, in those we disagree with, and in the world, is a necessity. Reflecting on gratitude is humbling as we remember God’s mercy, grace, and His relationship with us, and it encourages us to live out our calling as children of God.

Mercy is God not giving us what we do deserve. My brother-in-law wrestled at Northwestern, and he said that whenever a wrestler complained that they deserved something, coach Dahl would simply tell them, “No, you deserve hell.” While that comment may seem off-putting, it is absolutely true! Even when we are at our best versions of ourselves, the depravity of our sinful nature makes us unworthy to be in the presence of God. When the prophet Isaiah encountered the holiness of God, he exclaimed, ‘“Woe to me!’ I cried. ‘I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty’” (Isaiah 6:5). Isaiah was a respectable man, but he could not bear to be in the righteous presence of God as it made him aware of just how sinful he was. Yet, God provided a way for us to not receive the punishment we deserve of spending our lives and eternity separated from Him (Romans 6:23). We have all likely experienced the relief of not experiencing the full negative consequences of our actions– perhaps it was after getting pulled over and anxiously waiting in the car expecting to get a ticket, only to be let off with a warning. The gratitude we experience after being forgiven for earthly situations is only a fraction of the gratitude that we get to experience when we accept the eternal forgiveness that was provided by the atonement of Christ.

Grace is God giving us what we don’t deserve. God not only saves us from hell, but he also gives us the free gift of eternal life with Him in heaven. In addition, God also gives us the Holy Spirit so that we can commune with Him during our life on earth. Jesus proclaimed to the apostles in Acts 1:8 ‘But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth’” (NIV). God desires to be in relationship with us, and it is humbling to recognize that even though God does not need us to accomplish His work, he chooses to let us participate in His work. When I was in elementary school, my dad would ask me and my sisters to help with random tasks on the farm, like assisting with building a hog barn or feed shed. While he could have completed many of the jobs more efficiently on his own, he asked his daughters to help because it allowed him to spend time with us and to teach us new skills. Similarly, God gives us the gift of partaking in His work because it allows us to develop a relationship with Him. When we listen to God and partake in His work, we get to know Him better as he teaches and transforms our hearts

Gratitude for all that God has done and is doing for us is a catalyst for change and transformation. It challenges us to address the ways that we are falling short as individuals and as a Church and encourages us to recognize and respect the Imago Dei in each individual. Although we live in a fallen world that will never be perfect, gratitude gives us a desire to strive for a world that upholds God’s original design for the world – union with God, self, others, and creation. Luke gave a beautiful depiction of the early Church in Acts 2:44-47, proclaiming that,

The witness of the Church to the world is powerful when our mission and vision aligns with the vision God has for humanity in Scripture. The world influences us to live selfishly and in alignment with our sinful nature, but God and the Church influences us to live differently (Romans 12:12) and to live a life filled with gratitude and sacrificial love.

As we reflect on gratitude this Thanksgiving, let us also reflect on how gratitude changes the way we treat others and respond to situations occurring in our individual lives, our church, community, and the world. Let us ask how gratitude can help us to better resemble the early Church by trusting in the teaching of Paul in 2 Corinthians 9:10-11 which declares,