Being Grateful in a World Wanting More

Being Grateful in a World Wanting More
by
November 26, 2025

This week, I am working hard to cultivate a mindset of gratitude. I encourage you to do the same. Take time to reflect and name your blessings. Spend time with the people you love. I am grateful for my family. I am grateful for our church and all the ministries we have. I am grateful to live in Nashville, TN. I am grateful for my friends. I am grateful for my Vanderbilt students who always keep me sharp. I am grateful for the amazing response that we have had to our capital campaign this fall to move Woodmont’s vision into the future. Gratitude is a mindset. It is a way of living. As great as Thanksgiving is, we should not need a holiday to remind us of why it is so important.

Thanksgiving week is an ideal time for us to acknowledge the fundamental difference between envy and gratitude, coveting and contentment. We live in a culture with an economic system that, to some degree, fuels itself on coveting and comparison. Are we not told over and over again by marketers and advertisers that we deserve things that are bigger, better, and nicer than what we have? Are we not told that we would be so much happier if we just went out and bought whatever it is they are promoting because we deserve it? Isn’t the American Dream predicated on the fundamental concept of having a better life than the previous generation? We don’t just want to give our kids what we had – we want to give them something bigger and better. And then we wonder why we are never satisfied and why so many feel entitled.

Capitalism is far from a perfect system. It has its flaws. However, we must acknowledge that capitalism has lifted millions out of poverty across the globe and provided incentives and opportunities that many never dreamed they would have. Yet, at this particular moment in history, we are seeing the results of drastic inflation, rising costs, financial stress, and the inability of many families to pay for basic things like food, housing, insurance, and health care. While many live comfortably, many others struggle to make ends meet. Populism is the direct result of many people feeling left behind by the system and being ignored by the elites. The ongoing conversation around “affordability” and “cost of living” is at the center of politics and elections. Both sides try to use it to their advantage.

There was a famous grant study done at Harvard over a 75-year period. They tracked 268 male students who graduated from Harvard between the years of 1938 and 1940, many of whom are now deceased, in order to find out what makes for a happy and meaningful life over the long haul. The results were published in a book called Triumphs of Experience. Here’s what they discovered. Love is what matters most. Connection to other people and forming meaningful friendships is what matters. Moving from narcissism to connection is what matters, and working through challenges and adversity in life makes us who we are. Without these struggles, we cannot build character and learn resilience. The research showed that money and power, although important in achieving business success, do not necessarily equate to more happiness unless they are accompanied by the other things that bring us love, connection, and joy. No matter what we may have, we need people in our lives. Believe it or not, the world has many lonely millionaires still looking for purpose, connection, and friends.

Duke theologians Stanley Hauerwas and Will Willimon once said, “Our problem as humans is not that we are full of desire, aflame with unfulfillment. Our problem is that we long for that which is unfulfilling. We attempt to be content with that which can never satisfy. What we want is power and status. Alas, we find that no matter what we have acquired, there is always someone we envy.” This is the great spiritual challenge. We can heed the words of Paul as we celebrate Thanksgiving: “I have learned to be content with whatever I have. I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty.” Success addiction and upward mobility quickly become a trap. It has been proven that genuine gratitude for what we already have can help eliminate fear and anxiety, envy and jealousy. Thanksgiving is a week to slow down, spend intentional time with family and friends, acknowledge the basic blessings that we often take for granted, and give thanks for what and who is in our lives. It is much more than a holiday. It is a mindset.

Happy Thanksgiving!

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