Advent Week 1: Thankfulness

Would you like some virtues to introduce to your family during our journey towards the birth of Christ our King?  We will have a focus topic for each week of Advent!

This week, let's make an extra effort to be thankful to God for all that is.  God has made everything, even each of us, and the many good gifts that fill our lives.  Our proper regard for the Lord is one of praise and thanksgiving, and especially for His Son, who literally gave His whole Self and Life to humanity out of love.  Our Eucharistic gathering, in which we receive Jesus, comes from the Greek word for "thanksgiving."  How fitting.

Sometimes in our lives, even those things which we initially perceive as negative may turn out to be blessings in the end.  Even Saint Paul regarded trials as blessings in disguise!

To stop me from getting too proud, I was given a thorn in the flesh, an angel of Satan to torment me and stop me from becoming too proud! Three times I begged the Lord to make this suffering go away. But He replied, "My grace is sufficient for you. And My power is perfected in weakness." Most gladly, therefore, I will rather glory in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell within me. Therefore I am content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:7-10)

And so, in happy times and in sad, times of security or insecurity, health or illness, we should always offer our thanks to God, the Creator of all things.  We entrust our very lives to Him, as well as the various experiences, trials, and blessings that we encounter in our lives -- as opportunities He has given us on the walk to Heaven with Him.

We can also show our gratefulness to God -- and acknowledge our utter dependence on Him -- by offering a faithful tithe of the material blessings He gives us to share with others.  This is certainly a sacrifice, but this choice to give generously is one that: (1) recognizes our many blessings with gratitude -- not focusing on what we lack, (2) acknowledges God as the giver and the taker of gifts, (3) places ourselves in His constant care -- we give even though we ourselves may not have "everything," and (4) much like prayer, changes and conforms us to the will of Christ.  Sacrificial giving, almsgiving --which unites us spiritually to those who suffer -- is different from "excess" philanthropy, in that it has the power to truly reach lives and build faith.  When we give faithfully to Him Who does not come to check every month, we learn the value of honesty and sincerity in our dealings with others, and we can develop empathy and concern for those around us.

"Man ought to possess external things, not as his own, but as common, so that, to wit, he is ready to communicate them to others in their need." -Saint Thomas Aquinas-

Practicing continual and purposeful gratefulness is also an important spiritual practice.  Following the order of Natural Law, it's no wonder that cultivating a sense of gratitude is one of the best ways to avoid AND treat depression!  Here is a secular, but useful post about how gratefulness and giving serve as strong antidotes to greed, blessings to your community, and an impetus for a healthy view of finance and wealth... from an author who learned the "hard way."  How can you be more grateful for the blessings in your life?  Perhaps start with a list on your refrigerator this Advent.  Or, put a "Poor Box" by your door, and drop your change into it whenever you go in or out.  Encourage your children to also be grateful by filling in the "thankfulness tree" below.  Click and print for the handout!

"Indifference towards those in need is not acceptable for a Christian." -Pope Francis-