The sweetest of all thankfulness isn’t superficial; it goes deep. It goes past feeling happy that certain things are in our lives. It goes past naming those things so it is known that we appreciate them. It goes past even tracing their origin back to God and thanking the Giver for all of our blessings. There is a delightful, wonderful, beautiful experience when our gratitude is not merely directed toward God for His gifts, but toward God for Himself. This happens when we see beyond loved ones, comforts, simple pleasures, touching moments, adventures, favorite things and other wonderful blessings to see something about the character, generosity, supply, and love of God in Christ towards us. Deeply felt thankfulness is rooted in knowing God. Knowing… The peace that comes from trusting Him. The joy that comes from delighting in Him. The guidance that comes from following Him. The hope that comes from believing Him. The courage that comes from walking with Him. The renewal that comes from resting in Him. The love that comes from belonging to Him. The real blessings aren’t peace, joy, guidance, hope, courage, renewal, and love; the real blessing is Him. If everything we label as a blessing was taken from our lives and only Jesus remained with us, we would be infinitely, mind-blowingly, perfectly, eternally blessed. The more we realize the staggering nature of the Gift that can never be taken from us, the more we will rightly enjoy all of the gifts that have been temporarily given to us. The way to be best thankful for all that God has given us is to be most thankful for Him.
