With a Thankful Heart 

(our theme for November)

1 Timothy 4:4

For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving,

Everything is good. It is so hard to see good in every single thing on Earth. Of course, we can see the beauty of nature and the delicious food we have to eat, but where is the good in murder, and hate, and disease?

Nothing is to be rejected! 

It may seem trivial, but think about how we behave in the grocery store. We walk up to the mountain of apples and pick and choose between the dozens to find the one we think looks perfect. We act as if the one next to it is not good enough. If an apple has one small imperfection, we reject the whole thing.

Nothing is to be rejected IF it is received in Thanksgiving! The difference between everything being good and not is in how WE receive it.

Wait. Whether something or someone is good depends on whether I receive it with thanks?

Yoshida Kenko wrote that the leaves do not fall of their own accord. They are pushed by the buds of the new growth. So, wait, I can read the thoughts of a Buddhist monk written 700 years ago and hear God speak to me? There is an order and purpose in all things. 

A dead rotting tree covered in worms and mushrooms will be the food of the next mighty oak.

Manure grows bountiful crops.

The tears that I shed today will water the seeds of hope for the flowers that will bloom in the future, whether I will ever see the flowers or not. 

When I look at an apple, do I see the small bruise and put it back or do I see the apple that has been grown, packed, and shipped so that I may enjoy it?

The way in which I receive things will shape the present and the future. It will shape my present and future, and it will shape the present and the future of that thing. How I interact with other people will shape my today and tomorrow and it will shape theirs.

The choice I make in how I receive others is my thanks to God(or it is not), and how I receive others shapes how they receive me.

Let us pray.

God, help us to accept and not reject. Please help us to receive all with thanksgiving and see the good that is all things that you have created. Allow us to understand that it is our vision that has limits not your goodness. Amen.

This devotional was written by Jill Pope and read by Judy Wilson.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life. 

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org. 

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.