A few weeks early to raise this thought for those who celebrate gratitude once a year, but if your heart is (or longs to be) filled with the pleasure of all the things that God has given (or withheld) then let me offer this challenge today. Think of some things for which you are thankful and each time they come to mind, express it to the Giver of all good things.
Let your own thankfulness fuel your spirit and like a thermostat, begin to affect the climate of every room you enter, as opposed to a thermometer that simply adjusts to the temperature that currently exists. It's amazing how easy it is to be bitter or a gossip (whether speaking it or listening to it)...so simple to complain about the boss or aforementioned thermostat setting or service at a convenient lunch spot (ironically sometimes done right after we've "returned thanks" ) or traffic on this road or drivers on that one...how no one else ever does any work around here...the list goes on.
But you know what's even more amazing? How difficult it is to belly-ache around grateful people. They are constant reminders that there IS much to be thankful for...air conditioners and favorite lunch spots...time alone in the car on 280 and people in the other cars all around my vehicle who need a smile right now more than ever...even health and hands and feet that allow me to get work done. Everywhere we turn God has provided...has demonstrated His immeasurable grace...love...generosity. John Piper said, "Gratitude is the guardian of the lamp of the soul. If the guardian dies, the lamp goes out." Keep it burning as you go about your day and let your own thankful soul be a reminder to yourself and others that God is good...always.