Ta!

How are you feeling today? Well, exasperated, tired, crotchety or something else? Above all we should be grateful. Grateful for a new day, a new opportunity, a fresh approach to things grateful to be alive and living.

Manners are all important and in particular when we are grateful for something we do need to express that - grateful we have a home, grateful we have friends and family, grateful we belong to a caring and loving church and a community where people matter and are grateful for our lives. Think how we moan if someone doesn't thank us for pulling aside in the car to ease another's situation, or stopping to help someone in need, or supporting the food bank or the need to feed campaign. We all thrive on good manners, especially thanks.

So we acknowledge that gratitude is important and the need to express it. We are, after all, caring people and it comes as second nature almost to us. However, in the early weeks and months of the pandemic how good were we all at being grateful? We had so much yet sometimes we focused on what we didn't have and sometimes we did grouse! The lockdown frightened us all, for it removed our security, our familiar - people we loved and cared about suddenly could be potential virus carriers and weren't with us when we needed them. Some of us had to go through the horrors of loved ones dying remotely and unable to grieve properly due to funeral restrictions. It shook the roots of our being as things were beyond us and many were fearful and panicky.

With time we settled a little again, living securely in our homes, chatting to friends and family over the phone, ipad or waving to them through windows. We were deprived in some ways of Church, though quickly enjoyed being a part of an online community and seeing our beloved buildings. We could even chat to friends through online Zoom gatherings and things felt sort of normal. We could have food, maybe not initially what we exactly wanted, but we were not hungry and swiftly organisations set up additional avenues so no-one should be hungry or homeless through lockdown. We had so much to be grateful for and still do. Things have been turned upside down and some people have suffered unnecessarily with health issues but there is still gratitude for so much. We know we are not out of the woods yet, so to speak, but we are able to enjoy a lull, catch up again with friends and family. We can enjoy the last remnant of Summer and start planning (our household at least!) for Christmas! We Primes are always ahead for that!

Have we remembered everyday to reflect our gratitude for life itself in the pandemic? Has thanksgiving been a major part of the prayers we offer for ourselves and others? Sometimes we are so good at praying for the needs of others especially in adversity and our needs that we forget, or push to the back, our gratitude for all that God in Christ has done for us. We all can fail to do this perhaps as we should at times and can we reflect this gratitude in other ways? Think how we focused on the NHS and health and front line workers.

Today's challenge is to remember in all things to be thankful to God and especially for his love and commitment to us in His Son Jesus. The pandemic has been very bad and although in a lull, might again be bad, remember in all of life, we have to reflect our gratitude to God, and to others. The pandemic has been awful but although it has changed each and every one of us in some way we have become stronger and for many faith deeper and for others an awareness has deepened of others. There is so much to return thanks to God about.