Oh Give Thanks to the Lord

Occasionally I watch a podcast by an atheist. (I like to know what the other side is thinking.)  In one episode he questioned why we say a prayer at mealtimes. His challenge was: “What is the difference between blessed food and unblessed food?”

My answer to him would be, there is no difference. The food does not change. What changes is our heart and our attitude. When we give thanks for the food, or “say grace,” or “say a blessing,” we are being reminded to be thankful for our food and for our blessings and for all those who brought it to us. Living a thankful life makes us enjoy our lives more.

A common practice at Thanksgiving is to encourage people to say what they are thankful for. This is a nice practice. But it misses one element: to whom are we giving thanks?

When we say “thank you,” it is to someone who has done something good for us. So we address our “thank you” to a person. When we generally “give thanks,” to whom are we giving thanks?

Psalm 136 expresses it well.

¹ Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,    for his steadfast love endures forever.² Give thanks to the God of gods,    for his steadfast love endures forever.³ Give thanks to the Lord of lords,    for his steadfast love endures forever; 

⁴ to him who alone does great wonders,    for his steadfast love endures forever;⁵ to him who by understanding made the heavens,    for his steadfast love endures forever; 

And then it goes on to list some of the things God has done, with the response each time: “for his steadfast love endures forever.”

May you live a life of thankfulness. And may your thankfulness be directed to the Creator who has provided this wonderful earth for us to care for.