Thanksgiving Day in Canada, the second Monday in October, is a day overflowing with turkey, potatoes, and pumpkin pie. Pictures of cornucopias, stuffed with fruits and flowers, decorate our homes as symbols of a good harvest and times of prosperity. It is a day set aside to thank God for His goodness and for the harvest.

A friend recently reminded of the importance of giving thanks. She explained that there is a difference between being grateful and giving thanks.

God is moved when we express our gratitude. I don’t need to wait until Thanksgiving Day to verbalize what I am grateful for.

Giving thanks does not need to be complicated. I have learned to thank God for such simple things as the wind that blows against the window on a hazy summer day. I thank Jesus for hot coffee and for the smells that arrest my senses and wrap all around me. I thank God for the morning birds that sing and call to me as I walk with my children. I thank the Lord for my cats whose playful purring reminds me of simple pleasures.

I thank God for hearing my prayers and answering them. I thank Him for all my supportive friends and for all my loving family.

The Lord has blessed me with many good things but He has also given me trials and lessons from which to learn and grow. I thank the Lord for showing me physically, emotionally and spiritually that He is here with me all the time, every day.

Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good (Psalm 136:1 NIV).