Storyline Fall 2015

Written by Joyce Rempel
E
very time autumn arrives with its crisp air and changing
colours, the annual gathering of pumpkins, the aroma of
roasting turkey, well … don’t you just get a little tired of being told to
give thanks? Especially when circumstances are tough?
There’s a constant negative narrative that runs in my head. Sometimes
it’s my inner critic, or shame from being rebuked by someone,
or the voice of Satan. So when I picked up the book 1000 Gifts, I was
really challenged to find simple gifts already present in my life for
which I could be thankful. The subtitle of the book is A Dare to Live
Fully, Right Where You Are. Live fully? Really?
I’d read Jesus’ words in John 10:10 about having “abundant life,”
then look at my circumstances or failures and think, “What abundance?”
I was taught to believe in a good God who meets all our
needs out of His riches in glory. After all, doesn’t He own “the cattle
on a thousand hills and the wealth in every mine”? Like the old question
“Is the glass half-full or half-empty?” I was always half-empty, in
a perennial state of disappointment. Reality (and I) never seemed to
live up to expectations.
Then the question came ... What if abundance has
nothing to do with perfection, position, or possessions?
No cornucopia of “blessings” spilling out on the table? No cup full
and running over? What if abundance has to do with my perspective?
“Blessed are the poor …” Jesus said. “for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven.” Jesus taught us to pray, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be
done on earth, as it is in heaven.” Heaven on earth? Now, isn’t this
true abundance? The very presence of the Spirit of Christ, on earth,
in me, “the hope of glory”?
my heart open to what I
missed in my previously
jaded glance. Eucharisteo
allows me to live fully right
where I am. As I began
to name gifts a few at a
time, one day at a time,
my perspective changed.
My glass isn’t half full any
more. The glass is simply
the wrong size.
In the power of the Spirit,
I can trust the truth that God is good, loving, and sovereign in every
circumstance, even when I fail. It is His presence that strengthens me
to live the hard eucharisteo – obedient thanks – when circumstances
seem humanly impossible, like the untimely death of a loved one.
God’s mercies, new every morning, give me faith that hard gifts are
the crucible which shapes my beautifully broken life for good and for
God’s glory. “Good” as God defines it, not as I define it. To trust the
truth of Philippians 4:6: instead of worrying, I can tell God what I
need, thank Him for what He’s already done, and peace will follow.
In fact, it says, “Peace will rule in your hearts.”
Practicing gratitude each day opens my
eyes to God’s presence, power, provision,
and peace.
Now, that’s abundance! •
The key word from which “thanksgiving” originates is eucharisteo: an
attitude of thanks, life-filling gratitude. In Philippians 4, Paul affirms
what it takes to develop this kind of attitude: “I have learned to be
content … I am ready for anything and equal to anything through
Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in
Christ’s sufficiency.” (Philippians 4:11, 13 AMP)
Even when I do not feel grateful, I can choose my attitude. In fact,
I have a responsibility to do so. A response-ability to control my attitude
toward my half-glass life. To see what is present with the eyes of
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