It was such a cold, blustery Sunday evening several years ago when my boys and I were on our way to church across town for the service.  It was that ‘bitter cold’ that a January offers us in New England.  It wasn’t just freezing, it was literally below freezing!  And besides that we had so much snow that the banks where the plows had tried to keep us free to move about were piled so high that it was nearly impossible to see around a corner to get out of a street.  And, some of the back roads were plowed to only a car and a half-width with the snow frozen on both sides.  These were snow-packed back roads with only an occasional sighting of a glimpse of tar.

I just love the Holiday Season.  From a child, it started with Thanksgiving.  We would draw the cornucopias, fat, colorful turkeys and boy and girl pilgrims at school.  On Thanksgiving Day, the older ones would watch football games most of the day.  And then ultimately, we would stuff ourselves silly on holiday.  The next thing we knew, we would be all a-twitter about buying Christmas gifts, finding and decorating just the perfect Christmas tree, hanging up decorations, baking Christmas goodies, and getting ready at church for the Christmas pageant.

O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever!   –  Psalm 30.12b

I read this recently from a Ravi Zacharias writing – that for the Greeks, it was knowledge.  For the Romans, it was glory.  But for the Hebrews, it was light.  He used several verses including, “The people that sat in darkness have seen a great light.”  (Matthew 4:16), “There was the true light which coming into the world, enlightens every man.”  (John 1:9), and “For God Who said, ‘Light shall shine out of darkness’, is the One Who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”  (II Corinthians 4:6)

I heard this recently – ‘What if when you got up every morning, all you had was what you had thanked God for the day before?’  That really resonated in my mind and heart, because not only am I not nearly as thankful as I need to be, but often I even forget to thank my Heavenly Father for all that I have asked Him.   And not only that, but I often grumble over my circumstances and what I do have.   As I look around me in both Europe and the States, on the whole I see a less than thankful people.  So many seem to be dissatisfied with what they have, or their lot in life.