Today I said, “thank you.”
I wrote thank-you cards to the men and women who recently joined me on a mission trip in Costa Rica.
Really, I should call them reflection cards. Because unlike a regular “thank you” card where I express gratitude for them coming, I shared reflections from their experience on the trip.
That’s what gratitude really is anyway. In my book The Way of Gratitude, I shared “Gratitude is seeing and celebrating the good around you.” So if we’re using that definition, these definitely were thank-you cards!
As I was writing, I began to think about the thank-you cards I received this year. One from a high school graduate. One from a staff member at church who I worked on a project with. There were more throughout the year, but the most memorable thank-you card I opened was also the most unexpected.
It was from a female pastor and church planter; a thank-you for making a donation (tithe) to her church.
Normally, this wouldn’t be peculiar. But then I realized, I can’t remember a time I ever received a personalized handwritten thank-you for donating to a church. The annual computer-automated year-end tax letter comes every year with the words “thank you” on it. But in my decades of attending churches and tithing to churches, this was the first time a lead pastor has handwritten a card expressing their gratitude for my donation.
Later on in the year, we gave our tithe to another female pastor, also a church planter. Once again, we got a personal thank-you.
Some people might argue, why would you expect a thank-you for tithing? Your tithe is between you and God. While this is theologically true–and God was the one who prompted us to donate to these two churches–that’s not the point.
The point is, women in ministry–whether they are lead pastors, church planters, or serving in any other capacity–are forced to be aware of and take action on that which men in ministry don’t. While a thank-you card isn’t required or needed, it’s certainly noticed. That’s the point. There’s a level of care and consideration women bring to the table that reflects the love of God.
So ask yourself, when has your pastor ever personally sent you a card? Maybe not even a thank-you card, but a birthday card? A sympathy card? A random “praying for you” card? Probably not often. But the character of God–the image of God–is just as reflected in these moments as in preaching, casting vision, and every other responsibility of pastors. Perhaps even more.
Today I said, “thank you.” I wrote it to people. I prayed it to God.
I invite you to gratitude today, too.