Thankful?

In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Jesus Christ concerning you.

– 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Today in America we celebrate Thanksgiving. Traditionally it is a day set aside to gather with family and friends over a feast while giving thanks for the many blessings afforded us. How sad to realize that many that are participating in this days festivities are not giving thanks to whom thanks belongs- namely God Almighty: our Creator, our Sustainer, our Protector, our Life-giver! Instead, so, so many will be heard saying today absolutely NOTHING regarding thankfulness of any kind to anyone!

I grew up in a typical middle-class family that professed Christian values! When I married and had a family of my own we would attend four separate Thanksgiving gatherings due to us both having divorced parents. Not a single one of those gatherings included prayer or a word of thanks that I can recall! Not one! It truly seems that this day, Thanksgiving day, is in actuality, for the majority of folks here in the good ole USA, just a day for people to gather together and stuff themselves with large amounts of food; while talking about worldly affairs and catching up with each other as many families only get together at holidays in our culture. It’s not bad that we gather to catch up, it’s not even bad that we gather to feast a few times a year!

What is bad is the fact that if we neglect giving thanks on the very day set aside for it how much more do we neglect being thankful the rest of the year? Truly thankful! Thankful not just for the outstanding things in our lives but also for the trials; not just for having our necessities met but also for helping others obtain theirs; thankful in the big, thankful for the small; thankful for our health or thankful when our health is taken that our Creator lives! He lives! Let us be thankful for what He gives and for what He takes away! Let us be thankful that His ways are so much higher than ours so we can rest so easy in Him- even when it appears dark His light is shining and will NEVER fail! Thankful that He keeps His promises! Thankful for much and thankful for little! In ALL things giving thanks!

Just imagine how today would be if everyone were to Stop and give Him the thanks He so rightly deserves! If we all fasted from our feasts and gathered in prayer for each other, for our country, for the world! Imagine that! Imagine if our country repented of it’s sins in prayer- in thankfulness for the opportunity to come before the Lord God Almighty- Revival! Look at Nineveh! Look at their repentance! Look at the healing God granted them! I pray that we wake up today- this day of Thanksgiving- and resolve to obey the words found in today’s scripture in 1 Thessalonians. We have much to be thankful for every minute of every day no matter how it might look to our human eyes! We have the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross- salvation to those that believe! God assures us that He works all things out to the good for those that love Him (Romans 8:28). Therefore, it is His will that we be thankful in all things- ALL things- Every day!

“Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.” -Psalms‬ ‭100:4-5‬ ‭