Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

Colossians 2:6,7

Is it easy to give thanks? I suppose the answer to this question might vary with the individual. Even within the individual one might answer differently from different perspectives. On the one hand it is easy to give thanks. When we compare ourselves to the vast majority of the people throughout the world, we realize that we live in luxury unparalleled in either time or space. When we are given eyes to see who we are in Christ, where we have been and what is to come, we are overcome with thanksgiving.

But that doesn’t mean giving thanks is always easy. For even in the midst of material blessing, even with the smile of Christ, life is still difficult. Some struggle to make ends meet. Others struggle with illness, either physical or mental. Still others find themselves struggling with relationships. And then there is our old enemies: the world, the flesh, and the devil. These three conspire to tell us that we do not have enough, we are not loved enough, and rather than being thankful we should be bitter.

Is it easy to give thanks? No, it isn’t necessarily easy, but it is good. In many ways thankfulness is a discipline, something that we must train ourselves to do even when we don’t want to. Having said that, we do not have to go far to reasons to give thanks this year: friends and family, home and health, the Love of Christ.

I am looking forward to hearing of what God has been doing in people’s lives tomorrow morning as we open up the mic and let our thanksgiving abound. Hopefully we will hear from you.