“Have you thanked Him yet?”
I remember these words, so foreign to my ears, coming from my Sister, friend, and teammate at the time, Kiersten. I took in her gentle words, chewed on them a moment. So unnatural to me to be asked THAT question in my moment of struggle, of pain, of doubt.
And then I realized the fact that the question took me completely off guard was a lesson in itself. A humbling question, and a lesson from God that I am still growing in.
Eucharisteo.
We as Christians grow up learning about being thankful at an early age. Be thankful for what you have. Give thanks to God. In America we have a whole day set aside for it after all. Which in my opinion has sadly become for many a day of different sorts other than gratefulness to our Heavenly Father, but I digress.
Echaristeo.
In Greek, literally means “He gave thanks”. And in her book “1000 Gifts”, Ann Voskamp writes how Jesus gave thanks at the Last Supper. He gave thanks to His Father, knowing the full weight and burden to come, “…who for the JOY that lay before Him endured a cross and despised the shame…” Hebrews 12:2
Echaristeo.
Broken down further this word contains charis, meaning GRACE. The derivative of charis is chara, meaning JOY.
God leads me Philippians 4:6:
“Don’t worry about anything, but in EVERYTHING, through prayer and petition with THANKSGIVING, let your requests be made known to God.”
Everything is a gift from the FATHER. The fact that He gives me another day on this earth is Grace in itself.
One thing on this race that I’m learning through my own trials as well as my squadmates and the people I meet is that God uses EVERYTHING for His purpose and glory.
Words given to Julian of Norwich:
“See that I am God. See that I am in everything. See that I do everything. See that I have never stopped ordering my works, nor ever shall, eternally. See that I lead everything on to the conclusion I ordained for it before time began, by the same power, wisdom, and love with which I made it. How can anything be amiss?”
Eucharisteo.
So I thank God for Sisters in Christ who give me hard loving truth, for authors like Ann Voskamp who learn to offer up thanks for the smallest, hardest, and greatest of gifts, and for new perspectives everyday. All are God Gifts.
And so as Ann began to write her list of thankfulness, I follow suit. And I challenge you to do the same.
A Sneak Peak into my Countless List of God’s Gifts:
1. The sound of a rushing river.
10. Orange cinnamon tea.
11. Lung bursting runs on the mountain.
15. Hilarious bouts of laughter.
17. A photographer’s view of sunrise
19. Vines intertwining on the trees
20. Vent sessions on mud steps.
21. Gardening in a mixture of rain showers and sun.
29. Morning walks with a friend
33. Community stuffed inside a mini-van
34. Creative young minds with colored pencils
39. The pruning of my fleshly pride
40. Tearful prayers
Sent from my iPhone
