Developing a Heart of Gratitude by Joni Tyner

As the cool weather settles around us, retailers woo us to shop and “celebrate” the upcoming seasons.  We’ve been tempted to buy our Halloween candy in July and stroll through Hobby Lobby’s Winter Wonderland by mid -October.  The intentional pausing of giving thanks is almost forgotten as Black Friday shopping strategies are formed and the shopping frenzy creeps into Thanksgiving Day. This shouldn’t be!!   It has been refreshing to see different Facebook posts of what people are grateful  for as we approach Thanksgiving.  Many reflect on the blessing of family, home, and their faith.  I’ve seen pictures of spectacular Nebraska sunsets that shout glory from our Creator.  It’s been fun to find joy in little things too. Who doesn’t smile when they hear the belly laugh from an energetic toddler or smell the wonderful aroma of a roast that simmers all day in the slow cooker?  One of my new favorites is to intentionally rest on the Sabbath after a full week of activities. (Yes!…I’m grateful for the ability to a napper!)

There are many scriptures in the Bible instructing us to be thankful. God desires us to develop of heart of gratitude much like we teach our children at a young age to say please and thank you.  As I scanned the Bible for a good “thanksgiving verse” , I found Colossians 2:7. I love this verse because it shows that joy and gratitude are the result of our first abiding in Him and growing our lives on Him.  It’s such a neat thought that we are literally overflowing with gratitude because of our love of Jesus. It’s something we can’t control!  It’s not a holiday that prompts it; It isn’t a “have to”,   it’s not because it’s a nice thing to do.  It’s because of Jesus. We love others, we have joy, and we overflow with thanksgiving because of Him.

“ Let your roots grow down into Him, and let your lives be built on Him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.”  Colossians 2:7. (NLT)

             Every year I plant an overabundance of flowers by the walkway that leads to my front door. I love the display of pink and purple as I come home each day.  I water them, weed them, and occasional remember to feed them with  MiracleGro.  For the most part, the plants do well and reward me with bursts of color. Yet, there are always a couple of duds.  They are in the same flower bed, they receive the same attention, yet they minimally bloom and by the end of the season, these plants have shriveled up.  As I cleaned out the flower beds, I realize the problem; these plants were unable to mature and display the beauty they were created to because their roots never developed. The plants started out well but eventually became stressed and died because the roots were superficial and didn’t grow deep into the soil.

Thinking of my begonia duds, I saw the correlation of our spiritual life.  As a growing Christians, God instructs us to grow roots down deep and build our lives on Him.  Similar to the way God created plants to start as a seed and grow into maturity, we too must expect that our growth will be a process. We water and “fertilize” the seeds of our faith by studying His Word, by choosing joy in difficult circumstances, and surrounding ourselves with other believers who will build us up. We “feed” ourselves and occasionally “weed out” certain influences that may distract us from living out our purpose. We grow strong in truth and overflow with thankfulness.

Thanksgiving is a special holiday that focuses on others and reminds us to be thankful. By intentionally leaning into Jesus and developing deep spiritual roots, we’ll be given unlimited opportunities to show others grace and practice gratitude throughout the year.

 “Dear Jesus, Your Word is full of examples of thanksgiving. As a growing Christ-follower, I desire to see gratitude in everything. I look forward to the day when my deep roots cause me to overflow with thankfulness in response to every part of my life.”