I want you to take a moment and think back to your childhood. For those of you like me who have a hard time remembering what you did yesterday, this may be challenging. But I know we can do it. Now, I want to ask you, did you ever try to run away from home? Or at least thought about it? Do you remember the circumstances that led you to consider that option? I’ll be honest and say that I can’t remember a specific event or thought that led me to want to run away, but what I do remember is the sort of general internal monologue that ran through my mind in those moments. And I suspect that it was probably similar for some of you. It went a bit like this. “Ugh. My parents are so unreasonable. They just don’t understand. If I were on my own and could make my own rules, then everything would be perfect. I should just run away.” Running away is the easy solution, right? Don’t like the rules we have to abide by, run away and make our own rules. We convince ourselves that the rules are the issue. They are unreasonable and unfair. So, we just need to make our own rules. Then they’d be perfectly fair. Right?

            The trouble with that line of thinking is that when we make rules that are fair and reasonable for us, they are oftentimes neither fair nor reasonable for anyone else because we are focused only on ourselves. That self-focus gets in the way of community. It breaks down relationships, not just with our friends and neighbors, but with God as well. We see this exemplified in the parable that Jesus tells in Luke 18:9-14. The Pharisees were a group of leaders in the Jewish faith who had become so self-focused that they began pointing out the things in others that made them look good. So, Jesus describes a Pharisee in the temple praying. And Jesus has this Pharisee praying, “God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.” Rather than worshiping God in his prayer or lifting others up to God, this Pharisee uses his prayer to tear another person down and lift himself up.

            This leads me to our other passage for today from 2 Thessalonians. In this letter attributed to the Apostle Paul, we read about the lawless one or the person of lawlessness. 2 Thessalonians says this about the lawless one: “He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, declaring himself to be God.” Do you know anyone like that? Someone who just seems to be opposed to everything and exalts themselves or their needs above anything else? Do you recognize any of yourself in that description? I suspect all of us have at least a little of that from time to time…even if it’s not obvious. But hopefully we also have a counter to those behaviors in our lives…something that turns our attention back to God and others.

            2 Thessalonians continues to talk about the lawless one in the verses that our reading for this morning skipped over. But then we jump back in with these words: “But we must always give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the first fruits for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and through belief in the truth.” We must ALWAYS give thanks to God, the author writes. It seems almost a non-sequitur, unconnected with the talk of the lawless one that came just before it. But I don’t think it is. I actually think it presents us with a strong counter to the practices and attitudes of the lawless one. What practice can we undertake to help us turn our eyes off of ourselves and onto God and others? What daily attitude shift can we make to pull us from our selfishness toward a humble acknowledgement of the greatness of God and the worthiness of our neighbor? I’ll give you a hint, it’s NOT praying that we would not be like “those sinners.”

            The practice that draws us out of ourselves and points us toward God and others is the practice of gratefulness. And what more appropriate time for us to hear a message about gratitude than on a communion Sunday at the beginning of November, the month that includes the holiday of Thanksgiving. For a while now, there has been a movement in the US (and particularly on social media) to make Thanksgiving more than just a day of the year set aside for being thankful. There has been a push to make the entire month of November a time of practicing gratefulness. And I would argue that everyday should be an opportunity to practice gratitude. But like anything that is good for us, we often struggle to make it a daily habit. Why does it seem so easy to fall into bad habits but such a struggle to get ourselves into good habits? Maybe because the reward for creating good habits is so much greater that God felt we needed to work harder for it. Whatever the reason, it is important for us, as caring human beings and as followers of Christ, to cultivate the good habit of thankfulness in our daily lives.

            And with that in mind, I’d like to propose two ways to do that. First, say thank you…even when you don’t FEEL particularly grateful. Now, don’t misunderstand me, I’m not suggesting that you lie or accept poor treatment or abuse from others. I’m suggesting that you create a habit of gratefulness in your life by saying thank you. You don’t need to be grateful in EVERY situation in order to cultivate a habit of gratefulness in your lives. But the simple practice of saying “thank you” to someone helps us to begin to think in terms of what we are thankful for in situations. It can also be a way of lifting up the other person by expressing a word of gratitude to them. I’ve often noticed that when I encounter someone in a store or at a business who seems grouchy or easily angry, responding with gratitude and kindness can often make a noticeable difference in their demeanor. And it will deeply impact our own hearts as well, as we cultivate that spirit of gratefulness.

            And the second practice I would recommend to us is a daily gratefulness activity of some sort. Perhaps it’s a game like the pick-up sticks we played for the time with the younger church. Or maybe it’s utilizing our Fall Into Thankfulness word a day image that is posted on the church Facebook page. It gives us a word or phrase for each day to inspire our gratefulness. If you don’t have Facebook, I printed a few this morning and you are welcome to grab one off the table in the lobby. If we run out, I can print more. Or maybe you could start a daily thankfulness journal where you write down everything you can think of that you are thankful for each day. That would be a wonderful way to either start or end your day. Or maybe as you sit down for a meal each day, you can spend some time giving thanks for the blessings you’ve experienced that day. There are many practices we can try to cultivate a spirit of gratefulness in our lives. And I encourage you to consider adding one or more of them to your daily rituals and see what kind of difference it makes in your life and attitude. I plan to do that same thing for myself.

            And as we turn to gratefulness in our lives, it will direct us away from ourselves, away from selfishness, toward humility and care for others. And ultimately, it will direct us to the God who created us, who sustains us daily, and who redeemed us through the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ. I thought I’d end this sermon in a way I haven’t ended a sermon for quite some time…with a song. As I thought about gratefulness and about how much God has done for us, I was reminded of the praise song by Matt Redman titled Once Again. And so I wanted to close this sermon with that song. May it be a prayer of thankfulness from all of us to our loving God who gave us life through Jesus the Son. If you happen to know the song, feel free to sing along.

ONCE AGAIN

Words and Music by Matt Redman

Jesus Christ, I think upon Your sacrifice

You became nothing, poured out to death

Many times I’ve wondered at Your gift of life

And I’m in that place once again

I’m in that place once again

[Chorus]

And once again I look upon the cross where You died

I’m humbled by Your mercy and I’m broken inside

Once again I thank You

Once again I pour out my life

[Verse]

Now You are exalted to the highest place

King of the heavens, where one day I’ll bow

But for now, I marvel at Your saving grace

And I’m full of praise once again

I’m full of praise once again

[Chorus]

And once again I look upon the cross where You died

I’m humbled by Your mercy and I’m broken inside

Once again I thank You

Once again I pour out my life

[Bridge] x4

Thank You for the cross

Thank You for the cross

Thank You for the cross, my Friend

[Chorus 2X]

And once again I look upon the cross where You died

I’m humbled by Your mercy and I’m broken inside

Once again I thank You

Once again I pour out my life