Thanksgiving with a grudge

               “Susan, eat all your spinach!
               “But mommy, I don’t like spinach.”
               “Eat it anyway, because it’s good for you!” Susan downs the green gunk and says,
               “May I be excused?”
               “No,” answers her mother. “You stay there until you think of something you’re                       grateful for.”                         
               “Okay,” the child replies. “I’m thankful that stuff hasn’t made me sick yet. Now can                 I leave?”

Many people will sit around a table this week thanking God grudgingly. They will be like the character Jimmy Stewart prayed in the movie, Shenandoah, who blessed a family meal by praying, “We plowed the ground, planted the seed, weeded the crop, but we thank You anyway…”

Begrudging thanks is no thanks. Ingratitude makes for difficult times because ungrateful people are thoughtless people. Think about God’s goodness to you and you won’t be reluctant to thank Him. It’ll spew from your heart like a geyser.

TODAY’S FOCUS
Before you thank God, consider the specific blessings He’s brought to your life, and your gratitude won’t be a ceremonial prayer but an explosion of praise.