Do you remember the old bumper sticker: “The person who dies with the most toys wins”? It’s all about one-upmanship. It’s a game we are tempted to play—getting the most toys—every time we compare what we have with what our neighbors and friends have.

Real thankfulness has to be learned

It’s insidious. You know the drill: The more you have, the more you want (and think you need). Often too the more you have, the less likely you are to feel heartfelt thanks for what you have. You reason that you have earned it and that you deserve it. It’s all about you and what you have gained.

Or do you remember each day to say, “Thank you, God”? 

The reverse can also be true. The less you have, the less likely you’ll see reasons to give thanks.

Let me ask you: What is the climate for thankfulness in your life right now? Are you thankful that gasoline costs nearly $4.00 a gallon, that you can’t afford to make your house payments, that you can’t sell your house, that the stock market has been in a twirl, that terrorism remains a real threat?

Are you thankful for the pain in your back that never goes away? Your arthritic hands? Your cancer? Heart disease? Allergies?

What about the floods, the fires, the tornadoes, the hurricanes that destroyed some of your “toys”?

A childhood friend of mine contracted a debilitating disease at a young age. She cursed God for it. What would you have done?

Saying “Thank you!” does not come easily or naturally. Grandma gives Junior $5.00, and Mom barks at him: “Say thank you!” We need the reminders. What we get we think we deserve, unless it’s something we don’t want. We have an entitlement mentality. That frame of mind leaves little room for gratitude. 

So we set aside a national holiday in the hopes that we will all take time to think and so to thank. But that too can miss the mark— thankfulness “forced” into one day and focused on the wrong things such as “toys” and other material or physical benefits.

Real thankfulness is dependent

Real thankfulness happens each day and becomes a part of our being. Real thankfulness is humble and thoughtful, aware and introspective. Most of all, the deeply thankful person knows that he or she is dependent and beholden. We depend on God—for everything.