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 THANKSGIVING-a natural response

God doesn't ration out his goodness

I STILL REMEMBER how uneasy I felt the first time I read this verse from the Bible: "And his allowance was a continual allowance given him of the king, a daily rate for every day, all the days of his life."1 It refers to the provision made by the king of Babylon for the king of Judah, who had been released from prison and was now being treated well after thirty-seven years in exile. I know I was supposed to feel encouraged by that verse. It can bring to mind God's constant care for each of us. Yet to me it suggested that although God had every bit of good that I could ever want, He was rationing it out over time in morsels.

I sure am glad that God's provision isn't set up that way. Yes, God's care is constant. But He doesn't dole out a pinch of good here and there. All of God's goodness is with us now. So we can experience it now and be thankful now.

WHAT IS THE GOODNESS of God? Many people would agree that it's not things or money or status. The only substance God knows is His own, the substance of Spirit. So the goodness of God must be spiritual. Sometimes people consider money to be good. While it may be an indication of how God provides for us, money itself isn't substance or the source of happiness. Joy, stability, love, even health, can't be bought, because they are actually spiritual. They are of God and belong to each of us as God's children. The never-ending goodness of God is entirely spiritual and entirely present.

Giving thanks for God's spiritual goodness, already present, transforms the way we think. And as our thinking changes for the better, our day-to-day experience improves. And our needs are met.

Giving thanks for God's goodness is natural. The first verse of the twenty-third Psalm says, "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want." Why don't you want? Because, as the reflection of God, you already have. In God's kingdom, where we actually live, there isn't just a little bit of good on the table that everyone is scrambling for. Infinite good is just that-infinite. So there's more than enough to go around. "God gives you His spiritual ideas, and in turn, they give you daily supplies," writes Mary Baker Eddy. She continues: "Never ask for to-morrow: it is enough that divine Love is an ever-present help; and if you wait, never doubting, you will have all you need every moment. What a glorious inheritance is given to us through the understanding of omnipresent Love! More we cannot ask: more we do not want: more we cannot have. This sweet assurance is the 'Peace, be still' to all human fears, to suffering of every sort."2

THERE WAS A TIME in college when I had to perform at a level that seemed way above my head. As hard as I worked, and as intensely as I tried, it just wasn't enough. Drawing on a limited, personal concept of ability, I couldn't measure up, and became increasingly frustrated. Then I learned that "divine Love is an ever-present help." My potential as the representative of God was so much more than I had ever realized. In fact, as I learned more about the nature of God and of each individual as God's son or daughter, I realized that everyone's potential is infinite. I made a pact with myself to be deeply grateful for the unlimited presence of God in my life. I did it moment by moment. Yet even while I was struggling to do it, my performance went from substandard to surpassing my biggest hopes in a few months. What an incredible lesson!

Yes, "God gives you His spiritual ideas." Gives you. In quiet prayer, allow God to show you that His immeasurable goodness is already with you. Gratitude is a remedy for the fear of being without. It's worth the effort to be thankful for the nowness of God's goodness. Be grateful, not for some pie in the sky to be rationed out on a future day, but for a whole "pie"-the fullness of God's spiritual goodness-on your plate right this moment.

God's expression of spiritual good in you is entire and timeless. How rich you are! Thanksgiving is a natural response to such goodness.

(Mark Swinney is a contributing editor.)

1 II Kings 25:30.

2 Miscellaneous Writings, p. 307.

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