There are times when we might look heavenward and wonder, “What could there possibly be to be thankful for?” Amid a world full of problems, we might understandably feel despairing. Yet this Thanksgiving – and every day – let us give thanks to God for all the blessings He has given to us.
We Catholics are called to be an Easter people, a people of rejoicing and praise for the Lord. While the day-to-day rhythm of life may seem mundane and sometimes overwhelming, remember to pause and put things in perspective. Take Job, for example: In the face of his darkest moments, when despair seemed the only path, Job continuously found hope in the Lord. “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21).
It is easy to be thankful when things are going well in life and the path ahead is smooth. But to be grateful for all of life – moments both good and bad, times of joy and times of sorrow – requires great spiritual mettle and a lot of prayer. In Scripture, there are countless moments when, out of sorrow, God creates something good, though we can’t see it at first. Just as the prophet Isaiah wrote, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord” (Is 55:8), we must root our faith in God alone.
Thanksgiving is a unique holiday. Wedged between Halloween and Christmas, two times of the year when going out and buying things is most popular, Thanksgiving is a day when we should take time to contemplate – preparing our hearts and minds for Advent and the coming of our Savior.
Yet the noise of our modern world is a constant din, making it difficult to see the many blessings God gives us. Some days it might seem easier to sleep and dream, than to face the ups and downs of life. It may feel easier to bury ourselves in our cell phone screens and forget about prayer. But if we stop for a moment and stand back from the great mad spin of it all, we can see just how beautiful our lives are and how much more we can grow in our relationship to God.
This holiday, let us seek to find solitude and peace through prayer. Let us not be afraid of the noises of the world but remember to pause and give thanks to the Lord for all He has given us. Family and friends, food and work, clothes and shelter, our very breath – it all comes from God. And if we see all we have, we might just remember those who have nothing. When we realize that all grace and love come from the Lord, we might fill our hearts with His strength, and go out to help those who are weak.
As the Dutch writer and theologian Father Henri Nouwen put it, “Let’s not be afraid to look at everything that has brought us to where we are now and trust that we will soon see in it the guiding hand of a loving God.”
We hope you enjoy these Scripture verses and prayers of thanksgiving this holiday and always. Clip them out and put them on your refrigerator, or share them with family and friends – a reminder to give thanks to God for all He has done for us.
— Spencer K.M. Brown
Thanksgiving Prayer
Father in Heaven, Creator of all and source of all goodness and love, please look kindly upon us and receive our heartfelt gratitude in this time of giving thanks.
Thank you for all the graces and blessings
You have bestowed upon us, spiritual and temporal:
our faith and religious heritage.
Our food and shelter, our health, the loves we have for one another, our family and friends.
Dear Father, in Your infinite generosity, please grant us continued graces and blessing throughout the coming year.
This we ask in the name of Jesus, Your Son. Amen.
Ephesians 5:19-20
“Sing and make music to the Lord in your hearts, always thanking God the Father for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
— Offered by Bishop Peter J. Jugis
Psalm 95: 1-7
“Come, let us sing joyfully to the Lord; cry out to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before Him with a song of praise, joyfully sing out our psalms. For the Lord is the great God, the great king over all gods, whose hand holds the depths of the earth; who owns the tops of the mountains. The sea and dry land belong to God,
who made them, formed them by hand. Enter, let us bow down in worship; let us kneel before the Lord who made us. For He is our God, we are the people He shepherds, the sheep in His hands.”