Happy Gratitude!
I've done some internet searching today, trying to figure out the difference between gratitude and thanksgiving, between being grateful and being thankful. "Grateful" and "thankful" seem to be interchangeable words, and both Merriam Webster and Oxford dictionaries' definitions cross reference the words. Yet, I've still had this sense that gratitude is somehow bigger than thanksgiving.
If you have ever received a Thank You note from Metro Ministries, it is likely that it said something like "thank you for your gift" as well as "we are grateful for your continued support of Metro's work" in the same note. While I am certainly thankful for what you did (your transactional gift), I am truly grateful for you and to be in relationship with you.
In searching the internet today, I found several references to scientific studies done around the theory that gratitude can make us healther, both physically and emotionally. Research out of University of California concluded "gratitiude is an emotional state and an attitude toward life that is a source of human strength in enhancing one’s personal and relational well-being." (Emmons, Robert A; Crumpler, Cheryl A. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology; New York Vol. 19, Iss. 1, (Mar 2000): 56-69. DOI:10.1521/jscp.2000.19.1.56).
These published research findings helped validate my sense of gratitude going beyond thanksgiving. My recent experience with surgery describes the difference for me. I am very thankful for having had successful hip replacement surgery the end of August. I am grateful for folks who choose to dedicate their talents and skills to helping people gain mobility, grateful for modern medical technology and for the folks who develop it and are ever seeking to improve it. I am grateful for every single person who prayed for me. I am grateful for my spouse who did so much for me during my recovery. I’m thankful he prepared meals for me, but I’m grateful he cared enough to take on the temporary role of caregiver and for holding me accountable for my own recovery. I am thankful yes, but I am grateful well beyond the words "thank you."
While searching the internet today, I came across this post by Irvnington UMC's Senior Pastor Denise Robinson. I encourage you to read the full post (sermon), but the last paragraph really reflects the spirituality of gratitidue: "In the end, gratitude, at least in one sense, has very little, if anything, to do with God. God doesn’t need our gratitude, but God knows we have a need to be grateful. If we are to fully live our faith, our focus needs to be on something, and someone, greater than ourselves. Gratitude is a fundamental ingredient of faith leading to a deep and meaningful life. Gratitude encompasses thankfulness and then moves beyond it. Gratitude means receiving the essence of God’s love and grace, and having been filled with thankfulness, letting God’s love and grace come out from you to bless others as you have been blessed. Where are you, where would you put your faith, on the circle of gratitude? The key is to never remain stagnant but to keep moving deeper until you attain that glorious inheritance that is promised to the saints, to all those who believe in God through Christ Jesus. Amen."
As we celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday tomorrow and through the weekend, may we consider gratitude beyond these few days, and may we explore how gratitude can be a game-changer in how we live out our lives.
|
.png)
