Thanksgiving is more than gratitude in return for our good; it includes expectation of and gratitude for all blessings in advance.
Since known history, people around the world have been giving thanks as a standard yet sacred practice of devotion and spiritual well-being. Today, many nations observe a Thanksgiving holiday with special celebrations of appreciation for all the good received throughout the year. However, the ancient Hebrews understood that thanksgiving includes expectation of and gratitude for all blessings in advance.
From the Old Testament, Psalm 23:5-6 (NASB):
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You have anointed my head with oil;
My cup overflows.
Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life,
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
This psalm is an affirmation of faith; a statement of belief in the reliably good nature of God. Faith is complete confidence in Divine providence and provision now and in the future.
“If one has faith, one has everything.” Ramakrishna
We thrive when we understand that all our favor has nothing to do with coercion, chance or circumstance, but our own willingness to walk a sacred path of faith. And giving thanks for what is yet to be is the spiritual practice of faith. So, when we allow our hearts to overflow with gratitude for God’s lavish blessings in our lives before manifestation, we release all doubt and worry and free ourselves to experience more love, beauty, freedom, and joy.
Giving thanks for what is yet to be
is the spiritual practice of faith.
With a foundation of faith and thanksgiving, we feel empowered to share all of who we are and what we have without restraint. In this, we become the generous embodiment of Divine Love and the Universe cannot help but respond in kind, multiplied many times over. Thus is how our goodness grows: thanks + faith = blessings. The more we give and believe, the more we receive!
© Nancy Noack and Mighty Oak Ministries International, 2019. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.