It easy for us enjoying feasts and watching football on comfortable couches to take our lives for granted.

Just as Job had endured a terrible time of testing, so did the pilgrims.

In his history of the Plymouth Colony, William Bradford writes quite dramatically, and often movingly, of the voyage on the Mayflower and the settlers' first winter in the new land. The voyage over "fast and furious seas" was dangerous and miserable. Many of the Pilgrims suffered from seasickness, and they also endured the hateful taunting and verbal abuse of some of the rough sailors who made up the crew. One of the Pilgrims, a young man named John Howland, was swept overboard but was saved and brought back onboard the ship.

A terrible situation developed about halfway through the voyage when one of the main beams cracked, making it very uncertain that the ship could complete the voyage. Temporary repairs were made, and the ship sailed on, sometimes meeting with violent storms that forced them to drop the sails and drift helplessly in the ocean.

When they finally landed, their misery continued. The winter was fierce. The people stayed aboard the ship, trying to survive on the rations that were left. They had not taken food to prepare for being stranded during the winter. In the section of his history called "The Starving Time," Bradford writes that in two or three months, at least half of the Pilgrims had died, sometimes two or three a day--of starvation, scurvy, and other illnesses. Out of more than 100 Pilgrims, barely 50 lived. Those that lived also were terribly sick. At one time, only six or seven were well enough to care for the others.

Although they endured tragedies and horrible living conditions, the Pilgrims could still thank God for His blessings.

Paul’s main subject here is PRAISE, THANKSGIVING. Notice the other important words in these passages; ALWAYS, CONTINUALLY, and IN ALL CIRCUMSTANCES. It sounds as if Paul is talking about a church service here, especially in Eph. "Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart..." But he isn’t. He is talking about a continual attitude for Christians - an attitude of the heart. How we are to be to each other. But how, you may wonder, can we have this attitude continually, especially "in all circumstances?" I believe the answer lies in our perspective of thanksgiving. We need the proper perspective.

1. One is our pride. This is the attitude that says, "Nobody ever gave me anything, I worked hard for everything I have." For years you studied hard and now it is finally paying off. With this kind of attitude, we feel that we have no one to thank but ourselves. This is the attitude that I am a self-made man and I pulled myself up by my own bootstraps. The Lord Humbled Job so thoroughly that he replied: “

1. Another attitude that keeps us from being thankful is a critical spirit or constant complaining. Instead of being grateful, this person will always find something to complain about. We read in the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible, that the Israelites often complained to the Lord and to Moses.

The Israelites began craving food other than what the Lord was providing.

The root of their complaint was their flesh. They forgot that they didn’t deserve anything! God was giving them bread they didn’t even have to work for. It was free. All they had to do was go and pick it up! But their ungrateful response was, "What? Manna again? All we ever get is this crummy bread from heaven. Wonder-bread... ugh! We wanna go back to Egypt!"

Complaining robs us of our thankfulness. Consistent griping can separate us from God and from other people.

3. A third attitude that keeps us from being grateful is carelessness. Someone once said that if the stars only came out once a year, we would stay out all night to watch them. But they are there every night and we have grown a costumed to them.

The Israelites grumbled because they had no food so God miraculously sent manna to cover the ground each day except the Sabbath day. Then they started to grumble because it was the same thing every day. They had a miracle - straight from God every day but were no longer satisfied. Because of pride, carelessness or a critical spirit we will never be truly thankful for all that God has given us.

We have so much to thank God for in our lives. Paul writes about the proper attitude in Philippians:

It baffles the unbeliever. How can you have so much joy and peace and contentment in a situation that is that horrific? There is only one answer: I have a Father in heaven that cares for me and He invites me to cast all my cares on Him. He is more than competent to take care of me. He knows what is best for me. And when I lay it at His feet I know that I can trust Him with it.

So many people facing Job’s circumstances or the pilgrim’s circumstances would turn their backs on God. Job demonstrated his faith in humbling himself and acknowledging the Lord.

Our comprehension and apprehension of God’s goodness. And through that, we receive a greater capacity to enjoy Him and experience Him in our lives.

While many people spend a great deal of time enlarging their prayer lists, we must also spend time enlarging our praise list and counting the blessings of God—naming them one by one. This day is about more than turkey; it’s about recognizing God’s goodness in our lives.

As you count your blessings today, let that guide your thoughts. Give God praise for His goodness and you’ll enjoy Him even more.