“. . . in everything give thanks;
for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
1Thessalonians 5:18
Praise the Lord for His faithfulness every day! As Christians, every day should be a “thanksgiving day.” Yet still, it is good that we set aside a special day each year (and especially this year) to give thanks to God. And yet the tragedy for so many in our culture is that we have forgotten what it means to be truly thankful (and to Whom!) For many, Thursday will simply be a “Turkey Day” – an excuse to eat and drink too much while watching TV and looking for Black Friday sales (this year on computer). But what is missing in such a “holiday” is any sense of joy or gratitude toward Him to whom all praise is due!
Romans 1:21 says this lack of gratitude is at the heart of much of our sin! For, although people knew about God, “they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to Him.” In our sin we find our hearts filled, not with thankfulness toward God, but with pride, selfishness, bitterness and complaining toward others. In taking God’s blessings for granted, we assume we deserve to be treated better than we have been and thus complain when we don’t receive what we thought we were entitled to have. But the Gospel frees us from such self-centered delusions. It re-orients our lives to God and puts Him at the center instead of us! When that happens we are finally free to do the one thing we were created to do – enjoy making much of Him who gives us life and all good things!
This morning, I pray that you know this freedom and are ready to express it joyfully in words and feelings of heartfelt gratitude offered to the One who is worthy of all praise through Christ! For it is Christ who has given us Himself so freely, to rescue us from our sin and lavish us with an abundance of grace so that we might be free to glorify and enjoy Him forever! So come, let us adore Him and give Him thanks for all he has done and given, and continues to give.
Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
Pastor Scott Lee