Gratitude & Letting Go - Day 3

Becoming aware of those things for which you are most grateful and expressing gratitude for them does not mean denying all the other stuff. How can we give thanks in the midst of pain, injustice, or feelings of depression? Is it possible to hold both our gratitude and joy, as well as our suffering, or the suffering of others? It is questions like this that draw us back to sabbath. Some people find an answer, a way, to respond to the paradox. Others find themselves twisted up by the questions, exhausted and confused. Either way, a return to sabbath can help.


Sabbath is not about denying reality, but viewing our reality in a new way. In sabbath, we take a step away from our regular patterns and see things through holy time. Holy time can hold the paradox for you, so you can see it in a new way. In this holy time, we might even be able to find things to be grateful for that we would not have had without going through struggle and pain. As Norman Wirzba discusses in his book, Living the Sabbath,

We never face our suffering along but as members of the body of Christ trained in discipleship to be attentive to each other's needs and present to each other in times of pain and suffering. If we are to bear each other's burdens, as the gospel clearly teaches, then we must learn to be available to each other, recognizing that in this availability we become gifts to each other. (Emphasis mine.)

He continues on in this chapter on Pain and Suffering, concluding that "The suffering in creation is not to be explained away. Our task is to learn to bear it together." Sabbath provides us an opportunity to express gratitude and joy together, as well as bear each other's sufferings. When we practice sabbath, we practice community.

Think of a time in your life that you suffered emotional, physical, or spiritual pain; but through that pain, found yourself grateful for what came out of it. Think of the pain or struggle you bear today. Is it blocking your gratitude, or is it enabling you to recognize the gifts of your life in a new way? Take time to reach out to your community today, make yourself available to the people around you, and practice sabbath together, bearing gratitude and suffering together.