Thoughts on the Thankful Heart
My five-year-old daughter had cancer. We were in the hospital a day or so after her surgery to remove the kidney that had been completely engulfed with the nasty stuff. For a child who had always been healthy before, the number of bad things like shots and IV needles and surgery cuts that were now stitched together but hurt and doctors who poked and nurses who gave her nasty medicine were so overwhelming, that the sad little thing just couldn’t face life. She just cried and wanted to go home to her daddy and her brother and sisters. I felt almost as sad as she did, and even more, I was scared of the future, because we had no guarantees that this surgery would make her well. We now faced two years of cancer treatments like radiation and chemotherapy.
“Sweetheart,” I said, “I can’t take you home yet.” And my heart broke for her as she sat on her hospital bed and cried all the harder. How could I help her??
“Can you think of just one thing that you can be thankful for?” I asked her hopefully. “Just one thing??”
She still sobbed, but not as hard, and she looked thoughtful. After a few moments, she hiccupped out, “I can have all the popsicles I want.”
“Yes, you can!” I agreed.
A small, wistful smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.
“I like popsicles.”
There is nothing that will lift a “blue” mood as quickly as being thankful, and if you are alive, there is probably at least one thing you can be thankful for. There are also times in your life when you may not have more than one thing that you can think of to be thankful for, so think of that one thing really, really hard.
I think thankfulness is something that can become a habit. The more you practice being thankful for things the more it seems to be easier to think thankful thoughts. And the more you think thankful thoughts, the more you truly feel thankful.
Thankfulness also is catching. I have a daughter who keeps her head in a thankful place by the strength of her will. I have learned a lot from being around her. It is a gift that keeps on giving…to share a thankful heart with the world.
Nature is a great gift to mankind. Sitting on a beach by the ocean or a lake on a beautiful summer day can heal a hurting heart. Looking at beautiful flowers or a sunrise or sunset or walking along a forest path or sitting on a mountain looking out at a majestic view, all of these things can make a person gain a better perspective of personal issues. And, of course there are times when natural disasters remind us of how small we really are, and ultimately, is not this a gift as well? Spending time in nature can give us a thankful heart.
It is hard to find thankfulness where there is envy, greed, dishonesty, malice, discontent, hate, and other unseemly motives of the heart. Thankfulness is found where love, joy, contentment, honesty, generosity and faith reside. Cultivating a thankful heart leads one toward gracious places of hope and blessing.
There is such a thing as giving a sacrifice of praise. When something truly tragic has happened in your life and you can praise God for that very thing, you are doing something sacrificial. Somehow this elevates the tragedy into something that can transform lives. Being able to give thanks for something awful is moving into a supernatural place where miracles happen.