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November rolled around and immediately all thoughts turned towards Thanksgiving. We all love it. It is my son’s favorite holiday even more so than Christmas. Always has been. What can I say other than, the boy has always loved sausage stuffing!!

But with this new month, I noticed that everyone was posting their gratitude. Hashtags abound with tweets on thankfulness. At first, I thought it was a lovely idea. I began wishing I had thought to do something similar myself. But as the month has continued, I have found myself wondering ….. What happens the other 11 months? Are we equally as thankful?

Thankfulness comes from contentment ….

  • Paul stated, “I rejoice greatly in the Lord” (Philippians 4:10). It was in rejoicing in His God that he found that he was content in whatever situation he faced. Whether he was fed or hungry, living in plenty or want, he had found the secret to being thankful. He rejoiced in His Lord.
  • David, a shepherd boy, acknowledged that his “cup overflows with blessings” (Psalm 23:5, NLT). He was filled with gratitude because he had discovered, “The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need.” (Psalm 23:1, NLT).
  • The writer of Hebrews exhorts us, “…be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you; I will never abandon you.” (Hebrews 13:5, NLT)

Seems that contentment and gratitude go hand in hand. One seems to fit inside the other. Maybe instead of wanting one more thing, I need to just become content with what I already have. I read this recently (sorry, red faced here, I cannot quote the source):

Contentment comes not from great wealth but from few wants.

Funny to me that in the middle of a month of thankfulness, Black Friday kicks in and we all scramble to hit the malls to get “our wants”. “What do you want for Christmas?”, is the question we will all be asking.ƂĀ  See what I mean?

I am all in for Christmas, don’t get me wrong. I will be buying gifts for those I love. And those gifts may include some of their needs and hopefully some of their wants, to their delight. But I truly hope the month of thanksgiving and gratitude carry over into the month of December. For it is as I remember the birth of my Savior – remembering it is in and through Him that all my needs are met – that my heart is filled with gratitude all year long.

Today I am joining …. Hear It, Use It and Sharing His Beauty and Inspire Me Mon. and Motivation Mon. and Mommy Mon. and Making Your Home Sing and Living Proverbs 31 and Mom’s Mon. Mingle and Mon. Musings and The Modest Mom and Playdates With God and Miscellany Mon. .