Gratitude for Food In Everything Give Thanks

Gracious Lord, make us truly thankful for the food we are about to receive. This is a common prayer believers recite before a meal. What does it mean to be truly thankful for a meal? My parents used to tell us to eat everything on our plate because there were so many people starving in the world. My friends shared how their parents gave them similar advice. As an adolescent, this made no sense to me. How could eating food on my plate help someone else who was starving? Typical young people thoughts…..

There are people with plenty of food and money but are unable to eat because of illness. Either they have lost their appetite for food, can only eat a tiny amount at any given time, or are unable to swallow food or liquids. During the time I practiced medicine, I had the privilege of caring for a very nice lady who had been treated for throat cancer. The surgery removed the cancer, but she was no longer able to swallow. While she was healthy otherwise, she required a feeding tube in her stomach only allowing liquid nutritional supplements. She would never be able to enjoy the taste of food again. 

Forty-two million people struggle with hunger in the United States. Of this number, thirteen million are children and more than five million are senior citizens. While my parents and other elders did not know these facts, they may have experienced hunger growing up, knew someone with a major illness that affected their ability to swallow, or perhaps just had godly wisdom about the problem of hunger in the world.

Having a warm meal is a blessing that should not be taken for granted. So, this prayer about gratitude becomes more meaningful when you reflect on food from a global perspective. 

Gracious Lord make us truly thankful for the blessings we are about to receive, for the nourishment of our souls, the healing of our hearts, and the renewal of our minds. AMEN

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