It’s cheesy. Totally cheesy. We go around the table and each state what we are thankful for. We laugh. We cry. We wash, rinse, repeat.
It’s totally my family.
We’ve done it for years and it’s a tradition I thought all Americans did on Thanksgiving day. But from Matt, to some a girl at the gym, even to a guy from church, I’m realizing that not all families vocalize thanksgiving on Thanksgiving.
But this holiday is particularly important to me because it’s easy for me to grow complacent in all that the Lord has blessed me with. Living in Orange County, California is particularly difficult because no matter where you look, someone has a better house, better car, better body, better better than you. But when there are moments to pause and reflect on blessings, it’s amazing how thanksgiving [the act, not the holiday] calibrates our heart and mind.
This month three years ago Matt and I were living in an apartment, with two kids, a crotchety neighbor, and neighborhood cat who was perpetually in heat. We were aggressively paying off debt and even though we were a two-income household, we were struggling to find funds for daily living. For example, we really needed a dresser for Ryen [Good grief, we were keeping piles of her folded laundry on the floor?!].
Our church has a resource center [a fancy Orange County word for thrift store] and we humbly walked in to pick out a dresser that had been donated by a member from church. It was a bittersweet moment as we placed the clothes into the drawer. Bitter because we didn’t have excess funds, sweet because through the church’s generosity we were helped.
And isn’t that what generosity does? Generosity changes lives. Not only for the receiver, but for the recipient. Someone generously gave, we received, both lives were blessed.
Three years later I haven’t forgotten the dresser or the station of life we were in. Looking back, I believe it has not only caused us to be grateful people, but it has challenged us to be generous people as well. If this was a math equation, it would look something like:
Generosity —> Gratefulness —> Generosity
Generosity begets gratefulness and gratefulness begets generosity. [Did I just bust out in Old English? Oh you bet’cha!] We don’t have that dresser anymore, we’ve moved out of that apartment and away from the demonic cat, and thanks to Dave Ramsey and his lame envelope budgeting system, Matt and I are debt free.
But the party doesn’t stop here, folks! This week as we talk about gratefulness, can we also be inspired to be generous? Your generosity might just be the linchpin in someone’s gratefulness. And their gratefulness might remind them to be generous. Wash, rinse, repeat.
So here we are, around our online table o’ fun. You know I’m going to ask it: What are YOU grateful for? How can YOU be generous?
I’m grateful that after almost ten years of going to college, working and not knowing what I want to do in life, that I’m able to do it and do it well even with my own obstacles. (I’m a paraplegic). I’m so blessed when each family comes to me and looks at their images and says, you and your sister (we’re a team) have blessed us more than you can know. And to know those images will live on for future generations is a dream come true! Happy Thanksgiving! 🙂
You are AMAZING!!! What a blessing. Go kick butt, girlfriend!
Great post! I’m thankful for those that haven’t given up on me when I wanted to give up on myself. Being betrayed by friends you thought were super close sucks, when those friends are pastors of the church we were going too sucks even more, but I am so incredibly thankful for what walking through this has produced. I wanted to just crawl in a hole and let the world pass by but my amazing wife and some incredible friends have come along side me, grabbed my hand, and showed me I’m made for so much more. Sorry if it’s TMI, I’m just so thankful for the people God has surrounded me with!
Oh my gosh! I TOTALLY relate to this. Just recently I’ve lost two really good friends and know your pain. You have an amazing wife! Praying for you.
I’m thankful for a healthy husband a healthy, beautiful 6 month girl.:) I’m also thankful we get to be home in SoCal for Christmas!
Congrats on the baby and enjoy Cali for Christmas 🙂
I’m grateful that even of I’m not WHERE I want to be, I have been given a spirit if perserverance to remain.
I am grateful for the job that pays my grad school tuition.
I am grateful for the food that delights my tastebuds & fills my belly.
I am grateful for the people that God has put in my life to refine me. (FINE. I am not totally grateful about this, but I will be one day.)
I am grateful for coffee.
I can keep going… 😉
I will be generous (and bold!) with the gospel in response to ALL that I have been given!
YES!!!
I’m thankful that despite us being a single income family, god continues to provide each month the tuition for my husbands school, my sons school and all of our needs and even beyond that some of the desires. I’m thankful that our single income is stretched so much that it still allows us to bless others and provide beyond our home.! But most of all I am thankful that one day I was broken enough to understand that the love of God and he relentlessly sought out after me. Shamelessly I have to remind myself sometimes!
Love ya b! Have a great thanksgiving!
Have a great T-day too! Love to the entire family from me 🙂 See you soon!
Bianca,
I loved reading this post. My husband and I are currently trying to get out of debt and it can be so challenging to stay motivated! Especially with Christmas just around the corner. We are determined to stick to a plan but sometimes it feels like such a lengthy plan that is taking forever. Did you ever get discouraged in the process?
Oh Carrie! What I want to tell you is that I’m holy and patient and kind. But that’s a lie. I cried, I argued, I fought… and that was just yesterday. 😉 I’m kidding. Kind of.
Paying off debt is painful. But it’s important to know that staying out of debt is equally burdensome. HOWEVER, it’s so worth it. There are moments to be discouraged, but that is a temporary mindset. Not to get all spiritual, but we need to be thinking our end/eternal goals. Does God want you to live the full life He’s called you to? Does He want you to be responsible? Does He want you to be content and complete in Him? Only you can answer that.
For Matt and I, we made a vow to never be in debt that we couldn’t immediately pay off. The only thing that is a long-term commitment is my car and yet even then, we would probably by our next car with cash. As awesome as this sounds, it comes with a HUGE sacrifice. We aren’t living paycheck-to-paycheck anymore, but we are very strict when it comes to finances. One major
argumentdiscussion was my budget. I really wanted to feel like I had cash (I grew up poor) so we made a line item in our budget once we had a bit more flexibility and that’s helped me be personally responsible for my budget.I’m praying for you RIGHT now! 🙂 Remember that Christmas can be special if you make it special. Gifts or no gifts!
I’m grateful for Jesus — for His grace, His abundant, immeasurable grace, and His love that so perfectly balances that grace with accountability.
And I’m grateful for my fiance — for sticking it through with me through our difficult moments, and for this sweet season of engagement.
And honestly so much more that I could go on and on. My family, my roof over my head, my cat who I *love*, my church, my friends — we have so much to be thankful for. What a wonderful reminder.
Melissa, I loved your list… well, that was until you told me you had a cat 😉 Hahahahaha! Just kidding. My dog made my top 10 list too 🙂 Happy T-day!
I’m grateful for the amazing work God is doing in my personal walk, marriage and in our sweet little family. He is showing me to have a more gentle spirit, because girl, I’m sure you know that I can go 110 mph and drive my man up the wall! Lord help me! ♥ #reallygrateful
I’m grateful for the wonderful friends, God has in my life in this season (I pray it doesn’t end 😉 who love me enough to keep it real and challenge me to do more for Gods Kingdom.
I’m grateful for the one income that has provided for us, seven years straight.
I’m grateful for Gods infinite love, mercy and grace because of it, He has taught me to forgive… like you and Mr. Issac Scott, I too have been betrayed and Man does is bite! But God is Good and blessed me with a Man who constantly is reminding me that God has made me wonderfully and fearfully made for His image and glory!
To God Be All The Glory!! I will GIVE more of my time, love and lots of hugs!! Oh And Yes!! I’m also grateful for my “Cafe La Llave” 🙂
Oh Liz, you’re awesome! Thank you for sharing. I can’t wait to hug you too! 🙂 PS I’m planning a conference at CCM on May 31st so mark your calendar and join the fun!
I’m graduating college this May and getting married in June. My fiancé is a gym teacher and I’m coming out of school with debt. I live in a 4 bedroom house (not bc we have a lot of money, but because it’s a mother daughter house and there are five children and three adults) my dad lost his job earlier this year and just recently got a new one (which in and of itself is a complete miracle from The Lord), but planning a wedding 45 mins south of NYC in this time period is torture when you don’t come from money. I was just sitting in the state of “poor me this is awful I don’t have, I can’t have”…and honestly I didn’t even want any of the wedding stuff until it was on a platter in front of me…I always said, I wanted a marriage not a wedding, and here I am sitting in my selfish, prideful state. Thank you for this post it was a kick right in the gut- exactly where I needed it.
Thus, I am thankful for my fiancé who is extra frugal, my parents, all four of my siblings, my degree come May, the ability to walk, for my car that takes me to and from school, my job, to know my Jesus came to the earth to rescue me from all of my selfishness, and pride.
Ally, I FEEL you. Totally. But remember that “special” is what you make of it. Your day is going to be awesome! And what would you lose if you prayed audacious prayers? NOTHING! Pray for big things! I wrote about my wedding experience here 🙂 http://www.biancaolthoff.com/wishes-and-dreams/
What an inspiring post! It’s so important to remember what we are grateful for! And that is a fantastic tradition to share what you are thankful for during Thanksgiving. Let’s see, I am thankful for my fantastic and supportive family and friends as these relationships are most important to me.
Bianca,
As always, love your post!
I had a rather unconventional Thanksgiving this year, in that I usually will at least have a “Friendsgiving” type thing at some point on the day of Thanksgiving (my family lives in TX, I live in Los Angeles). This year, I got a fresh revelation of God’s love, thankfulness and a few other things as well.
I’m thankful that I can choose to be thankful, no matter what. That bottom line, even if everything else seems to fall apart, my God does not. Grateful that I am never alone and that I am unconditionally loved. Grateful that I have an amazing family, great friends, a job and provision, an incredible church, and so much more! If you are able to/would want to, it would mean a lot if you would read about my experience this Thanksgiving. Would love your input and thoughts! The link is below:
http://foreverabeloved.wordpress.com/2013/12/03/a-toast-to-thankfulness/
Beautiful post!!!*-*