Thanksgiving
When we say thank you to someone for something they have done for us, the thank you is to be reflective of our gratitude.
God has accomplished much on our behalf! Our thank you to Him should always be more than token. They should be reflective of what God has done for us. He gave His Son that you and I might not suffer eternal judgement. God promised a comforter (Holy Spirit) to teach us, guide us, and encourage us. He did this that we might know life and know it more abundantly. Our thanksgiving ought to be quite in the morning, bold in the evening, our thanksgiving ought to have the voice of praise, the power of love and the ring of enthusiasm and sincerity.
But that is not all, if our thanksgiving is going to be reflective of the gratitude and thanks God deserves, there ought to be some labor attached to it, sacrificial, sweat popping, fruit bearing labor! Not because we owe Him, not because He needs our help, but rather because He deserves the glory!
So much of our thanksgiving is token. You don’t think so; when is the last time your prayer was full of “thank you” rather than “may I?” How often does our praise outweigh our requests? If thanksgiving is to be reflective of what God has done for us it ought to have the value of a soul attached to it.
How can this be accomplished you ask.
Take a look at what the word thanksgiving means. Webster’s New World Dictionary defines it this way:
- The act of giving thanks.
Now consider the word “act” – A thing being done or deed.
- An expression of thanks to God in the form of prayer.
Now consider the word “expression” – A pressing or squeezing out a showing of feeling, character.
At its core of meaning thanksgiving is the combing of simple thanks with the act of giving. Thanksgiving is an expression that rises above thank you. We need to examine our lives to insure that our thanksgiving to God is more than a token statement.
This holiday season I wonder; what can we do to take our appreciation for God and those around us to the next level?
Have an awesome Thanksgiving!
Barry Campbell – Newby Chaplain