*THANKS - see +*24
The emptiness is not the ultimate goal, they must become fruitful in such a way that the gifts received are reborn back into God in gratitude: "for only the fruitfulness of the gift is the thanks rendered for that gift"... becomes fruitful and shares in the procreation. (Contemplation, p47-48)
Thanksgiving, not for the material things given to us, but for the chance, in whatever small way, to give to others. (Soup, p133)
I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of next November, to be devoted by people of these states to the service of that great and gloroius Being, who is the benificent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be, that we may then all unite in rendering to Him our sincere and humble thanks for his kind care and protection." (George Washington, 1st Thanksgiving proclammation in 1789)
Proper thanksgiving toward God is an effective antidote to idolatry. It gives God His proper status as the Lord of our lives. It sets aside as relatively unimportant those things that would otherwise interfere with our loving and trusting God. That is, it undermines idols. As a response to God's love, proper thanksgiving toward God gets its power from God Himself. It is the avenue to receiving God's transforming love. God's love toward us precedes and empowers our love and thanksgiving toward God (see 1 John 4:10,19). Even so, the response is ours to make: either we allow ourselves to be empowered by God's love with thanksgiving to God or we disallow this. If we respond with sincere thanksgiving to God above all else, we find our lives being transformed by God Himself. We find ourselves empowered to obey God faithfully, just as Jesus did in Gethsemane. We find ourselves free to love as God loves. We find our former idols pointless and even repulsive. We come alive. http://www.luc.edu/faculty/pmoser/idolanon/Gratitude.html
Also see Grateful