GIVE THANKS

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” ~ 1 Thessalonians 5 : 16-18

Thanksgiving should be everyday, in every second of our life, in all circumstances. Good or bad. But I can’t say it’s easy. I even sometimes complain and moan. Sometimes we still sweat small stuffs. Ah, so boring, nothing to do. Or, too much to do, tired and restless. Although I have got a great job, I still think, if only my office was nearer, if only they raised my salary. Hahaha, that kind of thought is too foolish. Shame on me, people will see me as ungrateful person. That’s why I write this, to be my reflection and reminder so that I won’t sweat small stuffs, even the tiniest ones.

• We think our life is boring, while others really need more time to spare because they have a lot to do to live.
• We feel lazy to work, while many people are unemployed and stressed out because of being jobless.
• We think our assignments are difficult, too many, and our exams make dizzy, while many children and teenagers can’t study at school and university.
• We think being sick is awful, but we haven’t noticed many people out there even can’t go to hospital and have to struggle and cure it alone.
•  We think the sun is too hot, while we only need to walk for a while or under the umbrella, compared to people who sell their products all day long outside.
• We think wake up in the morning sucks, but many people have to wake up at dawn to start working.
• We think the dishes we eat in the restaurant taste bad, while we don’t realize that some people should scavenge garbage to find something to eat.
• We curse when our internet connection is slow, while many people even don’t have computer to do their homework.
• We curse when there’s traffic jam whereas we are sitting comfortably inside the car, while many other people suffer for the same thing, and they are standing densely in public transportation.
• We complain about the fat in our bodies, while people out there suffer for malnutrition.
• We complain because of having not enough money to buy 200 dollar shoes while many people wear perforated ones or even walk with bare feet.
• We moan that doing thesis is difficult and there’s no enough time, while actually the others have to do it while working and studying and helping their parents.
• We moan that our parents are annoying while many orphanage children wish they had mothers and fathers who love them.
• We moan when our parents don’t give cars or gadgets we ask for, while many children out there even don’t get proper lunch because their parents can’t afford it and they don’t complain.
•  We moan about our appearances, while some people suffer for physical disabilities.
• We complain about our life, while people have to die in their young ages.

It doesn’t mean we can’t feel it that way. Of course when it’s hot we feel and think like, oh it’s so hot, and the sun is killing, and so on and so on. Of course nobody can prevent us doing so. It automatically happens. After we think like that, just remember that many people are less fortunate than us. Because when we sigh, the questions are:

Should we moan? Should we complain? Should we curse? Should we say it out loud? Should we grumble? Should we gripe? Should we be angry to others? Should we? Does it bring any good result? Or worsen our mood?

Let’s start to be grateful in any circumstances. Give thanks because we are healthy now. Even if we are sick, we can rest at home. Many people out there have to work even though they are sick. Give thanks because we can study. Even if we can’t, we can learn outside.

Talking about the fat fact, it doesn't mean that we can’t burn our fat. It is good due to health reason of course. What I mean here is when we complain when we actually have not excessive fat. We torture our body by doing unhealthy diet while actually we are blessed with enough food to enjoy. Of course we do not want to be thin like those who suffer for malnutrition right? Then why should complain about our body?

We should give thanks because we have 2 normal eyes, 2 normal ears, 1 normal nose, 1 normal mouth, 2 hands, 2 legs, and so on. Even if we don’t, it means we are amazing because we can do things people can’t do.  We should give thanks because we have a house to protect us from sun and rain. We can sleep on comfortable bedroom covered by blanket to protect us from cold air, because many people sleep under the thatch and covered by newspaper only.

It’s not about Do’s and Don’ts. It’s not about good or bad. It’s not about right or wrong. Nobody can forbid us to complain or moan or curse. But is it necessary? To speak such unnecessary words like curse which bring up to no good for us. When we stop complaining and moaning we do it for ourselves, not for people. When we apply it in our life, it’s for the sake of our own good. The less we complain, the happier we become. The less we moan, the more grateful we feel. So, there is one key to make us give thanks continually and avoid complaining:

“Focus on what we have, not what we don’t have,

while remembering and praying for people who are less fortunate than us.”