Some of you may have heard of Ann Voskamp’s
best-selling book One Thousand
Gifts. In that book, she explores
the secret to a joyful life. Not
surprisingly, she returns to a truth of Scripture : “in everything give
thanks.” (I. Thess. 5:18) It is in gratitude that we
learn the secret of joy. As we begin to
truly see the nature of life – that all good gifts are from God, and that there
are so many gifts! – our orientation turns from grumbling and gloom to delight
and joy.
As the new
year begins, finding joy in the aftermath of vacations and celebrations can be
challenging. Math, spelling, and grammar
aren’t usually considered joyful endeavors for most of us. While the year is still young, consider folding in a new habit for your school focus –
thanksgiving. I’ve been challenged to
take up Ann’s Joy Dare this year. (www.aholyexperience.com) She encourages me to look for three “gifts”
each day and write them down while giving thanks. Having that idea before me each morning
turns the day into a treasure hunt!
You can
make this “gift hunt” as general or specific as you like. You could just keep a tablet somewhere handy
to your daily focal point (that’s the dining room at my house) and ask the kids
at lunch or dinner time to name three “gifts” that they’ve seen that day. Be sure you’re contributing as well! If you need the guidance of a more specific
approach, you could consider Charlotte Mason’s recommendations for daily
organization. She said that each day children need something or someone to love, something to do, and something to
think about. These can provide good
categories for thanksgiving. What
evidences of love are you thankful for today?
What activity or job are you glad you got to do? What idea, story, music, part of nature, or
art was a gift or blessing today? With
these categories in place at the beginning of the morning, you’ll be more aware of
the gifts that come your way each day.
Ultimately,
turning our hearts to thank God for these things creates deep and lasting
joy. As we get older, we begin to
realize that even difficult things hold hidden blessings, and we learn to give
thanks for those things as well. The
fact that we get to learn this supremely important lesson along with our
children in our homeschool is a huge gift.
It’s at the top of my thanksgiving list!