“I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought, and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.”
G.K. Chesterton
Hello again, friends! How have you been? I’ve been praying for you — that, regardless of where your journey has taken you this week, His presence has been made more real and more abundant than anything else in your life. Let’s keep abiding.
Today I’m stopping by briefly to share this wonderful quote with you! Here in my corner of the globe, we’re entering a time of year when thoughts turn toward the simple act of giving thanks. Of all the things we put on our calendar to mark with intent, this might be one of the best.
Chesterton often wrote about the power of thankfulness and here he gets to the heart of what gratitude really is by way of this lovely little word — wonder. Do you remember the last time you were uplifted by wonderment? The bright though brief days of childhood seem to hold the lion’s share of it for most of us. Truly, I understand — the realities of adulting can often numb us to simple mercies that fill our lives. In a post from this past summer, I wrote that I want to daily be more gratefully aware of all the wonderful that surrounds me and flows from His loving kindness. Even as I keep the long view of life in mind, it’s about taking notice of each small and good gift that graces our journey, noting the sacred in the midst of the secular, and allowing common simple goodness to foster as much delight as the exceptional. Pausing to give thanks and pray. To engage all of my senses as I see the beauty of each new day blooming alongside the thorns. Because when happiness is humbly enjoyed with a profound sense of wonderment, it’s enlarged and leads to a profound sense of gratitude.
