**Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. – Ephesians 5:20**

Do you ever feel like having five more minutes would make all the difference in the world? You desperately desire for five more minutes to clean before the company arrives, or prepare before the presentation, or hug before you have to say good-bye. When have you longed for just five more minutes?

There’s a country music song, Five More Minutes, that came on the radio the other day while I was in my car. As the lyrics rolled, I nodded my head in agreement with a smile on my face

Time rolls by the clock don't stop
I wish I had a few more drops
Of the good stuff, the good times
Oh but they just keep on flying
Right on by like it ain't nothing
Wish I had me a pause button
Moments like those Lord knows I'd hit it
And give myself five more minutes

The songwriter describes scenes from his life when he wishes he’d had five more minutes to enjoy … fishing with close friends, kissing his high school sweetheart, playing football on his home field, and talking with his grandpa before he died.

Don’t you wish you had a “pause button” that could freeze a moment in time? Who would you spend five more minutes with? What time in your life would you like to relive in order to remember it more vividly?

I’d sit with my grandpa (Papa) and ask him three important questions: “How did you became best friends with Jesus?” “What was it like to fight in WWII?” And, “what have you learned about God that you’d like me to pass down to my children since they’ll never get a chance to meet you?” I’d also thank him for his unconditional love and for introducing me to Jesus when I was a little girl.

I’d also rewind time and take more five minute videos of my children. Pictures don’t quite capture their sweet voices, their innocent questions, and the many times they said, “Watch Mom!” as they rode their bike for the first time, dove off the diving board, or waved goodbye on the first day of school.

I was too busy in the moment to ask Papa about his faith or record my children’s milestones. Busyness blocked me from thinking with a long term perspective. I was present in the moment, but I didn’t document it to pass down to the next generation.

But what I do have are my daily gratitude journals from when my kids were little. Before cell phones could snap photos, I took “snap shots” by writing down in a small notebook the date, our location, and what I was thankful for that day. Today I can read them and remember the scenes as if I was still standing right there. As if having a pause button, my mind drifts back to the past and I can clearly see who and what I was thankful for.

I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was actually living out Ephesians 5:20 which says, “Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

This Thanksgiving, let’s press pause and take five minutes to ask a friend or family member three questions that are sure to increase gratitude around our tables and in our hearts.


**3 O’CLOCK CIRCLES**

Here are 3 questions to encourage gratitude to grow in your heart.

1. During this Thanksgiving season, who or what are you most thankful for?

2. When you were a child what was your favorite part of Thanksgiving Day?

3. If you could pass down one important truth you’ve learned in your life to the next generation, what truth would that be?


**The Power of Giving God Thanks Will Ignite Your Faith and Change Your World!

Thank You for Being A Part of the 3 O’Clock Wake Up Call Movement**