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tagged: forgiveness, God, grace, gratefulness, holiday, John Stickley, salvation, thankfulness, ThanksgivingIt’s Thanksgiving…
Posted by John Stickley in Bible & Theology
So today is Thanksgiving. As celebrated here in the United States, it’s a day for family… for friends… for fellowship… for fun… for food… for football.
But thankfulness?
I’ll be honest… if I look at some of what’s going on in my life right now, thankfulness is hardly the attitude that comes naturally as I face Thanksgiving this year. My grandmother is dying as I write this, and may not make it through the day. I’ve got a tumor growing inside my left ear, and I’m facing a couple surgeries over the next year to correct the problem and restore my hearing. I’ve gotten behind at work, so I’m a bit stressed about that. Some of my extended family members are facing tumultuous situations. And on top of everything, we’ve got the stress of travelling 250 miles with three kids first thing in the morning, and of staying in a hotel through the weekend (which often equates to a bit of turmoil).
Thankfulness just doesn’t seem to appear on the menu.
Yet somehow, in the middle of all this, there’s peace, and yes… thankfulness.
I’ve found that it comes from reflecting on the gifts God has given. You simply can’t help but experience true thankfulness in that light.
Consider Scripture (these are just a few, I know):
Romans 5:8: “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Ephesians 2:8-9: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not of yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by works, so that no one can boast.”
Ephesians 1:4-5: “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will.”
Colossians 1:13-14: “For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”
We have God’s love. We have experienced his grace and forgiveness. We have been adopted as sons and daughters. We have HOPE.
Let us not forget that this Thanksgiving, no matter what the circumstances of life currently bring.
So what are YOU thankful for this Thanksgiving? What Scriptures draw you into an attitude of thankfulness? What is God doing in your life right now for which you can’t do anything but praise Him?
Think about it for a few moments, share, and be encouraged. God has blessed all of us in many ways, and we have MUCH to be thankful about.
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Thankksgiving calls for Thanks living. I’m glad God didn’t leave me alone, but came and revealed Himself to me as my Absolute Lord and All-Sufficient Saviour, and I thank Him for all He’s done for me since.
PRAISE HIS BLESSED, HOLY NAME.
I’m thankful and amazed that Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. That He is chipping (pounding)away at my flesh, pride, arrogance, etc, so that I am undone and left with nothing but His Gospel, which alone is sufficent.
One of Max Lucado’s books dealt with this, to some extent. The circumstances were different, but his point was that most of our problems come from our abundance, not our lack. Orphans don’t lament over grandparents, homeless don’t worry about problems with the house, Helen Keller didn’t have to look forward to surgery to fix her hearing, etc etc. And that couple in my SS class that can’t have children won’t be worrying about the turmoil of hotel life with three kids.
God has so blessed me that, at my age, I wouldn’t even be able to remember all the ways. But I do know the Word has opened up in ways I never could have imagined, we’re just 3-1/2 months from celebrating our 50th wedding anniversary, and we’re going to have a fine, fine Thanksgiving day today. We’re even able to have a family that doesn’t have any extended family, come over to share the day with us.
And I’ve even heeded John Piper’s advice, in thanking God for my prostate cancer. It’s added a dimension to life that I’d never have anticipated.
Trust me … live long enough and you’ll be looking back on all this, smacking yourself on the forehead, and saying “So THAT’S what that was all about……”
ps: (another of my annoying old sayings…) “We need more often to be reminded, than informed”.
Brother John,
I am thankful for my beautiful wife, amazing children, wonderful parents, wise brother and several very close friends who love me dearly. I am also thankful for God’s character and especially His love demonstrated and lived out in the person of Jesus, the sufferings in my life and the examples of those who have gone before us. A couple of verses that always cause me to feel thankful are:
“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” – Hebrews 4:15-16
“And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” – Colossians 2:15
“And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.” – Luke 24:2-3
Peace to you brother,
From the Middle East
John, sorry to hear about your grandmother and also the difficulty you will soon endure with your surgery. I will keep you and your family in my prayers.
I’m grateful for the opportunity God affords me with life. I’m grateful for His constant perpetual presence. I’m grateful for His grace to live through all the trials of life and the peace He bestows when I stop struggling and let Him have His way with me. I’m tremendously grateful for all the blogging friends I’ve met since I started blogging. The prayer community through them has been beyond rewarding. There are no words to describe the joy I have in my heart from the lives of my family (especially those grandchildren). And I’m extremely thankful for the church family I have here in Lawton. Can’t get much better than this. selahV
Brother John,
God is in full control, and maybe He wants her to be with Him.
It’s always hard to give a loved one up, even when we know that he or she is better off with Him.
Just think of all she will experience, after closing her eyes for the last time here. Joy unspeakable and full of glory to see Jesus, Who died for her. What a day, that will be…..
”Precious in the sight of The Lord is the death of His Saints.”
As all of you have indicated, losing a loved one is tough, even when we know the moment following their last breath here on earth will be spent bathed in the glory and splendor of heaven.
That’s exactly what our family experienced this Thanksgiving, and yes… I am thankful for this, as difficult as it has been. Perhaps I shouldn’t share this here as it was a private moment, but we found ourselves praying together on Thanksgiving as an entire family (my parents, my sister and her family, and my family) for the first time. I was privileged to lead that family prayer, and we were able to give thanks to God that His love is beyond our understanding, that His comfort and care is sufficient to meet all our needs, and that His purposes are perfect. And yes, we were able to thank God for giving my Grandma rest.
I will ALWAYS be thankful for that day, as difficult as it was. In many ways, it was the most meaningful Thanksgiving I’ve experienced.
Your prayers in this would be appreciated. The visitation is tomorrow night, and the funeral on Monday. Pray especially for my uncle (who has been my Grandma’s primary care-giver for the last 30 years), and for my kids (who are still processing all of this). God is still at work in this!
Brother John,
I will be praying for your family and you. The next two weeks will be the roughest. I know this by experience. I have been, where you are now.
Time does not heal, only The Lord can do that. I still miss all my family members who have gone on, but realizing that their race is over, and that they’re waiting for me to finish mine, spurs me on.
I wish I could be there to put my hand on your shoulder, and look you in the eye, so I could better convey my thoughts to you.
But, my Brother in Christ, He will not fail, nor ever forsake you, as you look unto Him.
In His Grace,
Dr. Paul W. Foltz