OPINION: 'Thanks' and 'giving' have a deeper meaning

W. Curt Vincent, The Laurinburg Exchange, N.C.
·4 min read

Nov. 27—"What if the church on Sunday; was still the church on Monday, too?" (Casting Crowns)

***

If there were ever a big-picture question for us all, that's it right there.

It doesn't matter what topic we insert for the word "church" — it could be birthday, wedding, Christmas, anniversary, Easter or Thanksgiving to name a few — what if the feelings and approach to any day we celebrated a big event were carried over to the next day ... and the next, and the next?

It short, I believe our daily lives would be filled with much more positivity. More importantly, we all might treat others exactly as the Bible says we should — "Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them ..." (King James Version).

This weekend, we are all in the midst of the Thanksgiving holiday. Most have already enjoyed the family gatherings, the feast of food, the morning TV parade and afternoon football. And now we are looking for ways to create meals with the leftovers.

And, of course, there is the unofficial start of serious Christmas shopping, begun on Friday with Black Friday and continuing Saturday with Small Business Saturday — plus all of the online specials to tease and tempt your credit cards.

But let's for a moment take a look deeper into the word "thanksgiving."

It's really two words, each one having its own very important meaning.

There is the word "thanks," which carries the meaning "an expression of gratitude, return thanks before the meal —often used in an utterance containing no verb and serving as a courteous and somewhat informal expression of gratitude, many thanks."

That word in and of itself is strong and, sadly, isn't used enough. Each and every day, every one of us could probably use that word many times if we just take time to notice those things that others do for us.

For instance, if a store clerk tells you to "have a nice day," my guess is that you might reply, "you too." It's something I find myself doing — but we should instead be saying, "thanks, you too."

One simple word adds so much weight.

And then there is the word "giving," which has the meaning "having the tendency to give; generous; becoming a loving and giving person; having the wisdom to see people's needs and the desire to meet them."

This is another strong word and is one each of us should aspire to have used by others to describe us.

Now, add those two strong words together and you have more than just the name of a United States holiday. It is a word that covers everything from what you claimed on Thursday when the family went around the table to hear what you were thankful for, to what it says in Philippians 4:4-7 — "The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

It is my hope that y'all enjoyed a safe and satisfying Thanksgiving with family and friends and that the feeling of thanks and giving will continue throughout the holiday season and beyond.

After all, the next handful of weeks should be nothing less than joyous, full of giving and thankfulness.

W. Curt Vincent can be reached at 910-506-3023 or cvincent@laurinburgexchange.com.

But let's for a moment take a look deeper into the word "thanksgiving."

It's really two words, each one having its own very important meaning.

There is the word "thanks," which carries the meaning "an expression of gratitude, return thanks before the meal —often used in an utterance containing no verb and serving as a courteous and somewhat informal expression of gratitude, many thanks."

That word in and of itself is strong and, sadly, isn't used enough. Each and every day, every one of us could probably use that word many times if we just take time to notice those things that others do for us.

For instance, if a store clerk tells you to "have a nice day," my guess is that you might reply, "you too." It's something I find myself doing — but we should instead be saying, "thanks, you too."

One simple word adds so much weight.

And then there is the word "giving," which has the meaning "having the tendency to give; generous; becoming a loving and giving person; having the wisdom to see people's needs and the desire to meet them."

This is another strong word and is one each of us should aspire to have used by others to describe us.