One of the many things I love about my grandchildren is their thankful hearts. When we give them a gift, no matter what it is, they are genuinely thankful. You can easily tell that they appreciate the gifts they receive. This is the heart attitude we can have if we begin at the place where we realize we don’t deserve anything. Any gift is undeserved.

As I was reading this weeks Torah portion, I was intrigued by the verses that talk about not sacrificing an ox, goat, or lamb to the goat-demons. They were no longer to offer sacrifices to other gods, only to Adonai. Why was this so important? I think that we can find the answer to that question in our reading from Matthew 15. Yeshua said that what comes out of a man’s mouth is what makes him unclean. I would expand that beyond words to include our actions.

I think that sacrificing to other gods was prohibited because it made them unclean. How does this have anything to do with being thankful for every gift? In my mind, this is how that connects. It has to do with our heart attitude. Our willingness to be obedient and give up what Adonai tells us to give up, and what comes out of our mouths. It all comes back to what’s in our hearts. Everything is a gift from Him. Our very existence is a gift. Every single thing that happens, every person in our lives, all of it is part of His gift to us. Our response depends on our heart attitude.

Be thankful for everything. He is working everything together for your good.