There are so many cliche verses and platitudes we will throw around this month, and while I sound cynical with this opening, I truly just want us to dig deeper. Life is hard, my friends, and sometimes it is REALLY hard. Grief, loss, financial struggles, abuse, addiction, pain…the list could go on and on. And sometimes it is REALLY hard to be “thankful and grateful”.
There are lots of scientific studies to teach us how important it is to be grateful and how focusing on gratitude can battle anxiety, depression, and so much more. It is a natural pain-reliever. From Positive Psychology, “The neuroscience of gratitude shows it activates brain regions associated with reward, enhancing feelings of contentment & emotional wellbeing. The regular practice of gratitude can lead to long-term positive changes in the brain, supporting mental health & resilience. Simple exercises like keeping a gratitude journal can improve mood, increase empathy & strengthen social bonds.” (https://positivepsychology.com/neuroscience-of-gratitude)
But let’s be real for a minute…knowing and doing are two different things. So let me give you a little bit of relief, it is NOT possible to do it on your own. I believe this is what Paul was getting at in several of his New Testament letters. Let’s start in Philippians 4:4:
“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!”
For context, Paul wrote this letter to a church being persecuted for believing in Jesus WHILE he himself was in prison. And prisons back then weren’t exactly humane. We often quote the second half of the next verses, but it is the first half that is key to understanding the bigger picture. He writes just a few verses later (v. 12-13):
“I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”
Something we often struggle with is holding two things seemingly opposite things at the same time and accepting that both can be true. We can suffer AND be grateful. We can face heartbreak AND have hope. We can struggle AND still believe. Paul writes to the church in Rome (Romans 2b-4):
“And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.”
I have seen with my own eyes and experienced with my own heart the power of hope. We have basically nothing if we don’t have hope. If we didn’t have the hope of Heaven, how could we face death? I often tell new-comers to healthcare that the first and most important thing they can do is make peace with death. It is the great equalizer and what every single person you encounter will one day face. It is many people’s greatest fear, but in my experience, for the Christian, it is the greatest gift. Death isn’t our enemy; suffering is our enemy. We, as humans and healthcare providers, should strive to limit human suffering and to provide hope.
I will leave you with two final thoughts…one is a final verse that can help you find hope and gratitude on your most difficult days (2 Corinthians 12: 9), and the last is a quote that I especially want to share in this month of gratitude as the wife of a farmer.
“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”
(God will provide the strength you need to find gratitude on the hardest days; you don’t have to shoulder it alone and His glory shines when we are honest in our struggles and in our only source of strength and hope!)
My grandfather used to say, “Once in your life you need a doctor, lawyer, policeman, or preacher but every day — three times a day — you need a farmer.”
If you ate today or put on clothes, be grateful for your local farmers. Georgia is one of the country’s leading agricultural producers, contributing more than $13B (that’s right, BILLION) to the annual economy. The vast majority of farmers have to work another job to support their families, and I can speak from personal, daily experience: the work never rests. In God’s original plan, He made man to steward the land, and farmers are the rare breed still doing that. When you are thanking God for all the things in your life this month, don’t forget to thank Him for the hard-working farmers who sacrifice and toil endlessly to feed, clothe, and house the rest of us!
Jesus loves you, and so do I!
Dr. Allison Key
