There are days when we don’t feel very thankful. Instead of being grateful for 8 months of time to take a serious look at our lives – to contemplate new and ingenious ways to do things – to be alive and not yet suffering from the thing that caused us to be isolated, we have grown frustrated, angry, anxious, and impatient. So what do we have to be thankful for?

We may believe our government is trying to control everything in our lives. We may even blame our elected officials for trying to interfere with our holiday gatherings. We are feeling cheated from some of our most treasured traditions. So what do we have to be thankful for?

I’m concerned for my fellow man – the one who relies on his income from the small business he’s invested his life into. My heart aches for the kids who will not have all the memories of a senior year. I am saddened by all of the lives that have been physically affected by this disease. I want to sing in church again. I want to hug my relatives and friends. I want to laugh with them, cry with them, share with them and love them as I used to do. So what is there to be thankful for?

It seems when things are out of control, our thoughts often turn inward. We can’t help how we feel, yet this whole year has been filled with disaster after disaster and we can’t come to grips, because we have absolutely no control over it. The greatest frustration is not being able to solve a problem immediately. We’ve grown so accustomed to instant results, we can’t understand why it’s taking so long. So what is there to be thankful for?

Instead of blaming the president, the governors and others, let’s turn to the one who never disappoints. God’s timing is not always instantaneous, even though He could wipe COVID off the map with just one word. His reasoning is not like ours. Perhaps He’s allowing this time for us to reflect on what’s really important. Is it on our needs or the needs of others? Is it on our desires, our wants, our stuff? Is it all about us? So what is there to be thankful for?

And what about the addict – the homeless – those suffering with mental or terminal illness. What have they got to be thankful for? We often sit in our comfortable lives feeling sorry for ourselves, but there is an entire population of those suffering in poverty, loss and hopelessness. There is an opportunity there. One which will not only bless them, but those who reach out to them.

I woke up this morning. God has preserved my life for another day, now how can I serve Him? I may not have much money, but I have enough to live on. How can I share my abundance with others? I don’t know what tomorrow will hold, but I know that God is in control of all of it. I know that this world will crumble, but God’s kingdom will remain. I need to share that good news with someone. That’s something to be thankful for.