Do I Thank God for the “Little” Things?

Thank you God for my family, my church, my bed….. Bed? How sweet and how convicting was that one innocent phrase out of the abundance of my 3 year old daughter’s heart. Sophie hadn’t been saying her prayers on her own for very long. She had heard me many times kneeling by her bed thanking God for all the big things: Daddy, Nathan, Sophie, Ganny and Pepa, Mema and Big Daddy, our church, Daddy’s job and so on. This came completely out of her little heart. She was thankful for her bed. My heart was so touched. Without even realizing it, she got it. She knew that every good gift came from God. “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” James 1:17 (NIV). Did I realize that? How much did I take for granted, not giving a second thought to the everyday comforts of life?

After kissing her good night, I left her room and went to ponder this simple prayer. I’d never even thought about thanking God for my bed. I’d not stopped to think about all the people who sleep on dirt floors or splintered wooden floors or the homeless who sleep on concrete…until then. Sophie didn’t think about that either. She just knew she had a bed to sleep in with pretty, flowery sheets and a warm quilt. How many other seemingly small things did I take for granted?

It reminded me of when our son was 3 and had just started preschool 3 mornings a week. He was so excited to have his own backpack. Every night when he prayed, he would thank God for his backpack and his folder. His folder was just a simple blue folder with his name on it that his teachers sent notes home in. To him, it was something worth thanking God for. Steve and I thought it was funny and cute. Looking back, it was more than that. It was the innocent overflow of a grateful heart. Now at 7, he finds it uncomfortable to pray in front of us. He seems to have difficulty thinking of what to say. When I tell him to just tell God what he is thankful for, he remains quiet. I tell myself that it is just a stage on shyness, which Nathan has never been. Is he still thankful for little things or does the comfort and accumulating toys give him a sense of entitlement? Not that we lavish “things” on our kids, we don’t. But birthdays and Christmas and times in between are met with generous grandparents, aunts, uncles and friends.

So the question for me is, am I setting a good example of being thankful? Is the only time I really talk about thankfulness at Thanksgiving? Do I thank God for our clothes or fuss about the never ending laundry? Do I express verbal thankfulness for our home or do my children hear me gripe about always having to clean up? When the light comes on in the van to get gas again, do I let out a big sigh or thank God for a way to go? What about having to cook? Am I really thankful for the food and togetherness at mealtime or is it just a worn down, half-hearted blessing that we have to get through before we can eat?

Beyond that, what about sunsets and sunrises, warm sunny weather and cool autumn evenings? What about friends to laugh with and talk to? What about ice cream or hot chocolate or the ability to take a stroll through our neighborhood? What about cell phones and computers? The list goes on and on. There are so many big and little things to thank God for; we could do it with every breath we breathe.

Yes, these simple little prayers from my children have taught me to look at each good gift as a gift from God, because that is indeed what it is. To take it a step further, I don’t need to just be thankful in my heart. “Be thankful and say so to Him, bless and affectionately praise His name!” Psalm 100:4 (Amplified). I need to express thanksgiving aloud so that my now older and sometimes ungrateful children can hear and follow suit. So I can be like Paul when he said, “Pattern yourselves after me [follow my example], as I imitate and follow Christ (the Messiah).” 1 Corinthians 11:1 (Amplified).