Pictured here, T. Alexander, carrying a box of turkeys which have just been donated to Mission Arlington. The turkeys are being placed in a freezer until we thaw them a few days prior to Thanksgiving Day.

By Jim Burgin, Staff Writer

Gratitude Born in difficult Times

“Give Thanks with a Grateful Heart,” or sometimes simply referred to as “Give Thanks,” is an American Christian worship song written by Henry Smith in 1978. The song is popular, and usually increases in playtime during the Thanksgiving season. We sing the song often at Mission Arlington^®.

This was Smith’s only published worship out of 300 unpublished compositions.  Smith wrote the song when he couldn’t find work after graduating from the University.  He was also suffering from a degenerative condition which eventually left him legally blind.

This song illustrates what Smith knew through his life, that we can “give thanks in all circumstances,” the hard times as well as the good.

Your Spirit Grows Gratitude in Us

At Mission Arlington^®, we hope to be thankful all year long, but our gratitude increases in and through the Thanksgiving season for many reasons, but especially because of the way you become a blessing to the people we serve.

Your drop by with turkeys and Thanksgiving food, as if you didn’t have a care in the world. You show up to help at 8:00 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning, as if this weren’t your only day off in a while.

And you bring such a wonderful spirit with you at every point.  How could we not be thankful?

Giving Thanks

It seems to me also that there must be a connection between gratitude and giving.  Yes, we are giving “Thanks,” but it is more than that.  There is something special about gratitude, when it comes from the heart, that flows over in giving to others.  When we are grateful, we give, and then that giving becomes an impetus for others to be thankful too.

Thanks be to God

I have served at Mission Arlington’s Thanksgiving Day giveaway every year for more than two decades.  As we near the end of each Thanksgiving morning, I imagine people gathered around their Thanksgiving tables, thankful for each other, and for the food, but also, and perhaps especially, returning that thanks to God.

I wouldn’t be anywhere else.  Hope to see you there too.