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Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. 

 Worship the LORD with gladness; 

   come before him with joyful songs. 

 Enter his gates with thanksgiving 

   and his courts with praise; 

   give thanks to him and praise his name. 

For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; 

   his faithfulness continues through all generations. --Psalm 100

(This is not just another Thanksgiving blog. Don't worry.)

I belong to a faith community where this mantra is preached: "Don't thank me; thank God!" When I first became a part of this group, this was a BIG problem.

See, I have this reputation to uphold. I am known to some as "the incredible thanking woman." Show me a kindness, I will say thank you. It's that simple. Credit where credit is due.

But no. I would thank someone for a word of wisdom or kindness and the hand would shoot up for me to talk to. "Don't thank me; thank God!"

A mam holds the door open-- thank you. "Don't thank me; thank God!"

I sneeze; "Gesundheit!" Thank you. "Don't thank me; thank God!"

Seriously?!?

It's almost comical, this near-Pavlovian response to those two little words. 

Don't get me wrong. I love these people, and this group changed my life. For that-- and them-- I do thank God. Regularly and vocally, to any who will listen.

But I think this is unnecessary, and deprives us of the chance to step smack into the middle of a mess with a fellow pilgrim and grow-- together. Here's what I believe:

I thank God that I am a healthy woman, that I can still get out and walk every day. And I thank the people whose hands have made the shoes I take for granted, the warm coat with the furry collar that keeps me comfortable.

I thank God that I can wander the aisles of the local grocery store, overwhelmed by the choices I have. And I thank the farmers who have toiled where I choose not to, the laborers who harvest and process and deliver the food almost to my front door.

And I thank the woman who asks me, "Paper or plastic?" Because without these willing hands, where would we be?

I thank God that I have a roof over my head, that I have a space to come home to every night. And I thank my children when they come over to help me maintain the yard or get the Christmas stuff down out of the loft in the garage.

I thank God that I live in a country that is safe from the ravages of war. And I thank the soldiers who have fought to keep it that way.

I thank God for bringing people into my life who have opened my eyes to how good I have it. And I thank those whose lives might be filled with challenges, for allowing me to walk alongside them in their grief and pain.

Oh, sure, I know. If we look, we see that all thanks point to God. Every thing points to the Creator. I know this. You know I know this.

But as Ron Hutchrcaft put it this morning, why wait to give a bouquet until the one receiving it can no longer smell its sweetness?

You never know.

You never know when that one word, that smile or looking someone in the eye and sharing a brief moment may be a complete game-changer. Responding in grace and patience instead of anger, offering a compliment or yes-- a word of thanks just might be the moment when a world-weary traveller first glimpses Jesus. 

I thank God for the gift of words. And I thank God for this medium to share the words he gives me. And I thank you for reading them. I pray they serve to brighten your day, even just for a few moments.

And I thank you for being Jesus to another. 

To my American friends: Happy Thanksgiving. May your table be filled with joy and laughter, with the very love of Christ himself. And may you walk away from that table filled to overflowing with the grace of the Lord, whose love endures forever and ever.

And to the rest of my friends, wherever you are-- I thank God for you. And I thank you for being Jesus in my life.