Today in Church, the topic spoken on was prayer. Prayer and gratitude go hand in hand. So I felt the theme was perfectly fitting for this upcoming week. For me, I am a little bit of a stickler when it comes to holding off on Christmas decorations, music, and other traditions until after I finish my last bite of pumpkin pie and say my last prayer of gratitude. And there is no shortage of Thanksgiving traditions in my home to replace the abundance of postponed Christmas traditions that I am anxiously looking forward to. Football, Turkey Bowls, turkey and mashed potatoes, the nap following my overeating (aka "Fat Dogging"), and, of course, my wife's amazing pumpkin pie. Perhaps most dear to my heart are the special moments I spend in the days surrounding this holiday on my knees expressing my profound gratitude to my Father.
Among all these traditions, I wish there was more Thanksgiving holiday music that I could queue up on my music player. Adam Sandler's Turkey song is a classic but doesn't quite inspire me the way that a handful of Thanksgiving hymns do. Sadly, as much as I enjoyed singing hymns themed around prayer in Church today, I didn't even get my standard fill of Come Thou Fount of Ev'ry Blessing, Prayer of Thanksgiving, or For the Beauty of the Earth. In contrast to Christmas where I can queue up different holiday albums all month long without repeating, my music collection includes maybe a single album by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir with these and perhaps a few other hymns of gratitude. So I find myself yearning for more inspirational Thanksgiving music this time of year.
Because of this, years ago when I stumbled across a Josh Groban Christmas album, I was pleasantly surprised to find that he had sneaked a Thanksgiving song onto his album. This beautifully moving song, called Thankful, has been my go to choice in November when I am looking for inspiration to guide me back to my knees. And it has become such a favorite that I don't mind queuing it up on repeat as often as I need that urge me to look beyond the distraction of everyday life to find some perspective, some humility, and some sincere feeling of thanks to my God and to my fellow man. Whether I take that one step further to give that thanks through word and action is another matter.
I hope this song can become a favorite part of your Thanksgiving traditions, regardless of when you decide to trim your Christmas tree. And to each of you, whether I know you personally or not, thank you from the bottom of my heart for sharing this world with me and for contributing your goodness to it.
Happy Thanksgiving and God Bless!
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Somedays, we forget to look around us;
Somedays, we can't see the joy that surrounds us;
So caught up inside ourselves, we take when we should give.
So for tonight we pray for what we know can be,
And on this day we hope for what we still can't see.
It's up to us, to be the change;
And, even though we all can still do more,
There's so much to be thankful for!
Each of us must find our truth; it's so long overdue;
Look beyond ourselves, there's so much sorrow;
It's way to late to say, 'I'll cry tomorrow';
So for tonight we pray for what we know can be,
And on this day we hope for what we still can't see.
It's up to us, to be the change;
And, even though we all can still do more,
There's so much to be thankful for!
Even with our differences, there is a place we're all connected;
Each of us can find each other's light.
So for tonight we pray for what we know can be,
And on this day we hope for what we still can't see.
It's up to us, to be the change;
And, even though we all can still do more,
There's so much to be thankful for!
