Love Poem: Thankfulness
Evan Perkins Avatar
Written by: Evan Perkins

Thankfulness

Thankfulness: the opposite of complaining
This isn’t going to come easily, it will take a little training
It’s the concept of being content with all that we own
And being grateful for all the love that God has shown
We so often think that our lives are so rough
Because we are so focused on getting, because we think we don’t have enough
But stop and take a look around
You’re sitting alive in luxury safe and sound
We really don’t understand how fortunate we are
We have food, water, a house, and usually more than one car
There are millions upon millions of people less fortunate
People that we don’t share our fortune with
There are people out there who have absolutely nothing
And this is for real, I’m not bluffing
They’re not sure where they are going to get their next meal
Take a minute and imagine how that must feel
C’mon, let that sink in
And that’s only one place I can begin
So many people are completely broke, struggling to survive, have failing health, live in way, and have nowhere to live
And you’re trying to say that YOU have nothing to give?
We sit here in our beautiful homes, brand new clothes, full of food, iphone in hand
While there are people out there who are too sick and weak to stand
Now to this, how are we going to react? Cause this sure isn’t fiction, it’s 100% fact
Are we going to ignore this and just sit around?
Are we comfortable just sitting in the background?
I say as children of God we need to take action
We need to get out there, not being swayed by every little distraction
Serving and giving generously to others doesn’t follow “The American Dream”
But maybe that’s not the right way to live, as though it may seem
I say it’s time for us to lay down our pride
Are you going to serve? It’s your turn to decide
We are all one body, we all have the same worth
That’s true for all the people here on earth
By Jesus we are called to love and not just sit around
Cause when we die, we don’t want to be just another corpse in the ground
In James chapter one we are called to serve the orphans and widows in their distress
We know exactly what to do, we don’t need to guess
Now this subject I really want to address
And my feelings, I want to express
If we were really thankful for all that we own
We would be OK to step out of our comfort zone
And if we are truly grateful
We would serve others in any way we are able
By doing this, we express our care for those who need it
That we can go out and DO something, we actually believe it
I may have just rambled on, but I wanted to make a point
But now you know my personal viewpoint
Now I’m not just talking to you, this also applies to me
So often I don’t fill the role I was called to be
But I believe that thankfulness isn’t just an emotion, it requires action to make it true
So now here’s the big question, what are you going to do?
Are you going to get out there or continue to stand on the sideline?
Are you going to be absolutely thankful or continue to whine?
You can try to convince yourself that people are fine
But think about it while on that $50 meal you dine
You can help change a life for pennies a day
That’s right, only one dollar a month you have to pay
“Dollar for the Poor” is an organization that’s making a change
Only one dollar a month? That just sounds strange
But it’s true, they’re making an impact
What if we all heard this and could properly react? One dollar a month and you can change a life
For that little donation, you can save someone from a cycle of strife
But it’s not just about money, it’s also about giving your time
This is real talk, not just a pantomime
There are so many things we aren’t thankful for every day
What if all of it was suddenly stripped away? Could we still be thankful and love God without all our stuff?
Will his constant love and providing actually be enough?
Our thankfulness shouldn’t be based off our prosperity or wealth
We so often blame God when loved ones have failing health
We should be thankful for the lives that we already live
Because God’s perfect gift of salvation is the best anyone can give
So don’t forget today, offer God your true thanks for life and your daily bread
Because apart from him, we would be left for dead