Give Thanks Everyday

By Reverend Paul N. Papas II

November 2, 2021

No matter how bad your situation may look that day, there is something or someone for which you can give thanks. You may only be thankful that you are above the grass and not below it. Perhaps you know you are above the grass because you feel pain and in heaven you won’t.

Perhaps you can see or hear for the first time.

Perhaps your candidate won.

Perhaps you have food to eat and clean water to drink.

Perhaps you have a home to live in.

Perhaps the lights and water are on.

Here are some examples of being thankful:

The Masai tribe in West Africa have an unusual way of saying thank you. Translators tell us that when the Masai express thanks, they bow, put their forehead on the ground, and say “My head is in the dirt.”

When members of another African tribe want to express gratitude, they sit for a long time in front of the hut of the person who did the favor and literally say, “I sit on the ground before you.”

These Africans understand well what thanksgiving is and why it’s difficult for us: at its core, thanksgiving is an act of humility.

Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving. –Colossians 4:2

Then:

A missionary to Haiti was told by a doctor that she might have cancer. A biopsy was performed and sent away for analysis. As she waited for the results, she was filled with fear and could find no peace of mind.

Then one evening her anxiety suddenly lifted like a cloud. She had a deep and inexpressible awareness that the Lord would take care of her husband and children and their emotional needs, regardless of the outcome.

As she reflected on all of this, it occurred to her that it was Wednesday evening–prayer meeting night in her home church back in the United States. She also realized that it was the first Wednesday night after friends had been notified of the potential crisis. These facts convinced this faithful missionary that God had given her an opportunity to sense His answer to the prayers of others on her behalf. In addition, the medical report soon came back with the welcome news that there was no cancer.

And:

A Peasant found an Eagle captured in a trap, and as he admired the bird, set him free. The Eagle did not prove ungrateful to his deliverer, for seeing the Peasant sitting under a wall which was not safe, he flew toward him and with his talons snatched a bundle from his head. When the Peasant rose in pursuit, the Eagle let the bundle fall again. Taking it up, the man returned to the same place, to find that the wall under which he had been sitting had fallen to pieces; and he marveled at the service rendered him by the Eagle.

Christians have a lot to be grateful for: Jesus Christ suffered and died for their sins. Have you thanked God lately?

Everyday you can find something or someone for which to be thankful.

Being thankful you generally will experience these benefits: have better relationships; have better health; are emotionally healthier; be more compassionate; be less resentful; be more resilient; be calmer; have better immunity; are better team players; are less materialistic; are more optimistic; are less self-centered; are more productive; feel more joyful; and are more relaxed. I would think most people would like to enjoy all those benefits.

Thank you.

Reverend Paul N. Papas II is a Pastoral Counselor with Narrow Path Ministries (MA and AZ) and Founder of the Family Renewal Center (AZ) www.narrowpathministries.org  and www.familyrenewalcenteraz.org