Giving Thanks

Inspired books and sources of wisdom

Whether we go to a holy text, a good book of poetry, or a science program revealing the wonders of the world for inspiration, we all need to dip into a greater source of wisdom than our own.

Our imagination needs feeding, the mind needs stretching to make room for new ideas, and the heart wants opening up to greater love and compassion.

In the year ahead, let’s make time to spend at least ten or fifteen minutes a day dipping into our favorite well for fresh input, timeless wisdom, and fuel for the spirit.

“I would maintain that giving thanks is the highest form

of thought; and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.”
G.K. Chesterton (lay theologian, philosopher, poet, writer, and creator

of the fictional priest and accidental detective, Father Brown)

By Ilona Goin

27 November, 2014 (Thanksgiving Day)

On this day—one of our most enlightened nation-wide celebrations—it seems fitting to consider the purpose of thanksgiving and the benefit of practicing it each and every day.

Thanksgiving is the finest way of living. It opens our hearts to childlike wonder and appreciation for the little things. It banishes fear and anger, cleanses us of self-righteousness and victim consciousness, and renders us humbled by the beauty of life. And it lifts our spirit and raises our point of view. Thus we find greater freedom and the sweet peace that comes with knowing that, despite our occasional doubts, all is well with the world.

Gratitude is not merely a reaction to having life turn out the way we wanted, it’s a state of accepting life as it is. It’s understanding that the life we find ourselves living each day is the life we’re meant to have, at least for the moment. With all its factors and peculiarities, it has become our day for a reason: we have something to learn from it. Our experiences have something to teach us, something important that will help us move forward, and our job is to get the lesson.

Gratitude lets us see that there’s a plan—that we’re on a journey with a divinely appointed itinerary. It’s not about fate, about inevitable outcomes, because we do have a say; our countless large and small choices along the way make the design of the itinerary a cooperative effort. But to have the best outcome, we must always be prepared to yield our will in favor of the wisdom of our senior partner.

Giving thanks is among the highest forms of prayer: it’s a pure state of worship. In a culture where people have long been habituated to wanting what they want and feeling entitled to having their desires met—even to the point of telling God what to do, rather than listening for guidance—gratitude has the power to break the spell of self-centeredness. Instead of giving God a wish list for the future, thanksgiving acknowledges the gifts already given and recognizes that, in God’s infinite wisdom, all that was truly needed has already been granted.

To our great benefit, giving thanks takes our minds off ourselves and clears the way for love and service to others. Gratitude for life is certainly a blessing for us, but it only achieves its fullest dimension once we pass it on. Because, above all, giving thanks is giving—giving back to life the joy that living gives to us. It’s pouring our love and creativity back into the well of life from which our bounty flows. It’s sharing what we have or what we know, passing on our gratitude in an effort to pay it forward. It’s letting our awareness of every Soul–you, me, and everyone–being blessed enrich the lives we touch. And in the process of giving, we realize that we have that much more for which to be grateful.