Habits of a Thankful HeartSample

Practicing Service

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 2:5)

Let’s be honest: sometimes it’s hard to be thankful because we are self-absorbed. It’s easy to think that our problems are more urgent and serious than other people’s. But serving others is a practical way to become more thankful and less selfish.

Service requires us to stop thinking about ourselves and to concentrate on the needs of others, which can put our own problems into perspective and make us grateful for the blessings that we do have. Also, service is often reciprocal. A community where everyone works to meet the needs of others is a community where one’s personal needs are also met.

But Christians recognize that service has a deeper purpose. In the glorious hymn to Christ in Philippians 2, Paul exhorts the Philippians to be of the same mind as Christ Jesus, “who did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant” (vv. 6-7). When we engage in loving, sacrificial service, we imitate Jesus—it is when we are most like him. The unity that we can experience with Christ through service is a precious gift. It is an opportunity to express, both to God and to the world, what his love means to us.

Reflect: If you find it difficult this year to be thankful, take time off from thinking about yourself. Instead, think of one way to serve those around you. Use it as an act of thanksgiving and praise.