Just recently sat and thought about all of the material things I need to improve my life. And, boy…it’s a long list. This wasn’t a “woe is me” moment, but rather an opportunity for me to assess the best way to fulfill each of these needs. Let me tell you. At first glance, this list might seem pretty intimidating. I mean really…if I didn’t know better, I might find myself looking at the list and slipping into a depressive state. But that didn’t happen. Instead of looking at the list and feeling sorry for myself, I created another list containing the blessings I already have. And guess what? My list of blessings overwhelmingly overshadows my list of needs.
I have so much to be grateful for. My life, health, and mobility are enough to put to shame that entire list of needs. In fact, most of the things I need are an upgrade of things I already have. When I realized this, my perspective changed entirely from gratitude to thanksgiving. What’s the difference? According to Ellen Angelica Pendergast:
“Thankfulness always has to have a receiver and a giver, something or someone who has caused this moment of thankfulness. Gratitude, however implies that we are just in that state of Being; the basic difference is that being thankful is always for something given, while being grateful only requires developing that state of BEING…being grateful for WHAT IS.”
I also like how Fr. Stavros Akotirianakis explains the difference between gratitude and thanksgiving.
“Another way to define these terms is that the grateful heart is content, while the thankful heart is helpful. The goal then is to develop a grateful heart, one that recognizes the gifts of God, and turn it into a thankful heart, which glorifies God through loving expressions towards others. Gratitude means we are pleased with ourselves. Thanksgiving offers things that please God. Thanksgiving is gratitude in action.”
So then, it’s not enough for me to say, “I’m blessed”. I need to consciously separate what it means to be grateful and what it means to be thankful. I’ve learned to realize that there is more to life than the peace that a grateful heart can offer. I need to actively show God how thankful I am for the blessings He has already provided for me. I can do this in several ways. But for me, I will make more of an effort to be a light that shines bright in this dark world. I will do this by showing kindness, respect and most of all forgiveness. We can’t just be grateful. We have to show thanksgiving. Let’s spread our blessings to others. And as always, let’s press on together!