It seems like every day I hear someone say how blessed they are.  It usually sounds something like this – “I love my new job, I’m blessed,” “I just booked a once in a lifetime vacation, I’m so blessed,” “My spouse is such a thoughtful person, boy am I blessed.”  It makes me wonder, what about people who don’t love their jobs, can’t afford a fancy vacation, or don’t have a spouse who hangs the moon (or don’t have a spouse at all)?  Are they not blessed?  A blessing, in that context, is something that is given to you, maybe by God or a friend.  If you are enduring a particularly difficult time, are you less blessed by God than your friend who seems to have everything going their way right now?  No.  So, for me, the phrase is “I’m grateful.”

Gratitude is not something that is given to you (like a blessing), it is something you give toward someone else.  The focus is completely different.  You can be grateful for wonderful things that are happening in your life (like a great job, wonderful vacation, or amazing loved one), but you can also be grateful for hard times, because of the things you learn.  I would never say I was blessed by having gone through cancer, but there are aspects of that time that I am grateful for.  It showed me how loved I am, how strong I am, and how faithful my God is.

Robert Emmons, Ph.D., writes: “In the face of demoralization, gratitude has the power to energize. In the face of brokenness, gratitude has the power to heal. In the face of despair, gratitude has the power to bring hope. In other words, gratitude can help us cope with hard times.”

So, during this Thanksgiving season, remember all the things you have to be grateful for (whether they are blessings or not).  That is sure to bring some hope, no matter your current path.