One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp is about one woman’s journey into growing in thankfulness through a simple challenge to write a list. Gratefulness is a trait we should all desire, but it can be a hard habit to form.

When it seems like God has blessed others but missed our lives, it can be best to remember God is in all things, even those that are small.

The word, eucharisteo, in the original language of Luke 22:19 (“he gave thanks”) means being thankful, grateful, and giving thanks for all things. Life can be tough at times. Life can even be mundane and seemingly meaningless at times, especially when daily activities become routine. During these times, we can practice eucharisteo, not just for the moment, but as a lifestyle.

Whether we learn to see the blessings of God in the sunlight seeping through the window or the way the bubbles form in a sink full of dishes, we can be thankful. It may be tough at first to be thankful for the small things, but with practice, it can be life changing. Not only do we become more thankful for everything in our daily lives, we learn to help others by blessing them. This is God’s plan, sharing His grace so that it may flow through us to others.

In this summary, you will learn:

  • that eucharisteo is a way of life that we can adapt and grow from;
  • how God blesses us in all things so that we may be a blessing to others; and
  • why being thankful in the small things can help us live life thankful in all things.

Being emptied allows for God to fill us with His grace.

The author opens with a very personal story. Though only four, she remembers what happened the day she and the lives of her entire family changed. Her sister, just a bit older, had chased a cat into the street and been hit by a truck, killed instantly. The parents did not press charges against the driver, but their lives forever changed, wondering why God would take their daughter.

It can be nearly impossible to feel the grace of God when dreams are crushed and losses leave us empty. It was this way with the author’s family who had lost a beautiful child for no apparent reason. The father, though once very trusting of God, now ignored Him, saying He must not exist or care. In essence, saying, “No, God.”

So many in the world still believe this lie today – the one the serpent first put into Eve’s ear, saying, “God is no good.” The prevailing thought is that God is withholding good from us or lacks in love for us. It seems as though what God does give is far from enough. This is a toxic belief, but one so many hear each morning.  When things go wrong, we suddenly lose sight of God and lose trust in an instant. Past and present blessings vanish from our sight due to one bad thing. The blessings have not really gone; we just choose to ignore them.

When we suffer a loss in life, even as Christians, we often start only seeing deficiencies. Fortunately, God has a master plan, even in losses. God wants to bring us to our full glory in Him; this has been His plan from the very first breath He breathed into Adam’s lungs. God means to fill us with His glory and grace, starting at the cross and continuing today in spite of our sinful world.

We simply have to decide whether we are going to open our hands and receive that grace or continue to overlook it in our everyday lives. If we were able to change how things worked out, to alter history, then a different ending would be had, but we do not know it would be better. God has an all-knowing perspective that we do not. Even when the bad comes into life, we need to understand that it may actually be good in the long run, even if we never see it. This may still leave us empty at times, unable to understand, but we still find ways to be full of God’s grace.

Thanksgiving is the basis for salvation, but sin comes from ingratitude.

At times in life, we may not feel like living or continuing because the day-to-day has gotten so tough. Often during these times, something shakes us up so violently that we realize we do want to live. The funny thing is we do not have to have any one thing happen, or even anything real. The realization can be from something such as a vivid nightmare or daydream that provides a reminder of life.

We not only need to be born again when saved but born anew. We must look for joy in all the Lord has done. Joy is the goal. We all search for a holy joy that is found when we give thanks. Joy is always possible, whenever and wherever we are willing to offer thanks for it. We can find this joy when we look because it is given in grace and joy as we give thanks.

Thanksgiving is at the center of Christianity. The commonality of the bread and fruit of the vine in communion is central to beliefs and serves as reminders that Christ is common in all things. The fall of humanity, however, was caused by a lack of thanksgiving over all that was around, the big and the small. We take Christ as a model, as He gave thanks not long before He went to the cross.

The same is seen when Jesus heals 10 lepers. Only one returns to give thanks, and he is made whole, or saved, at that moment. The leper was made whole – which was beyond healed – and was made whole from giving thanks. Salvation is about giving thanks, and ingratitude was the cause of the fall. Thanksgiving is inherent to true salvation and necessary to live the fullest life. If we learn to give thanks in everything, then the way God can show us His full salvation is opened. This is thankfulness for the good and the bad. We cannot be in the fullness of salvation until full thanks are given…

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