Thanksgiving 2022

I Thessalonians 5:18  In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

 

hymn of praise and thanksgiving

½ Full or ½ Empty

I am the queen of gratitude.  My glass is always ¾ full.  I see the silver lining in the cloud.  I hope for things I cannot see.  I believe in miracles.  I trust God and that He knows what He is doing…..until.

Until my children hurt and I cannot fix it no matter how hard I try.  Until my friends are sick, in pain, fighting depression, oh, the list is endless.  Until I am overwhelmed by the sadness and despair in the eyes of those I love.

God’s Command

The command of scripture is “Give thanks.”  Not really an option.  It is a commandment:  Do it because the Father said so.  Do it without question.  Do it whether I feel like it or not.  Why?  Because it is HIS will.  I am a child and He is my Heavenly Father, and He said I was to do this.  Again, Why?  It is found in His love and compassion.  He knows it is for our good and His glory!  I never really enjoyed discipline.  Did you?

Check Engine Light

Is pain really for my good?  Yes, it warns us that something is not right in our life, our body, our spirit, our relationships with God and/or man, in our attitudes.  It points to roots of bitterness, unforgiveness, and our stubborn failure to seek repentance. It is the “check engine light” of our life.   Something in our life needs cauterization, the equivalent of “burning the house down,” which is the Hebrew meaning of repentance.  Turning around after I burn the house down so there is NOTHING to return to.  It means a change of direction.  It means changing my mind and will to line up with HIS will.  In this case, give thanks in all things.

The Smelter’s Pot

These past few months, I have been immersed in turmoil.  Some issues (dross) have risen to the top of the silver smelting pot.  I am not seeing Jesus reflected as I look into the Smelter’s pot.  What I am seeing is anxiety, anger, stubbornness, determination to “fix” what is not mine to fix, and problems that I have no control over.  I see myself trying to be the Holy Spirit of others, and a god of control.  So, when things don’t go according to plan, I am anything but thankful.

Challenge Before Us

It seems I have a house to burn down.  Repentance must occur before restoration.  True repentance is only truly known by God the Father.  He alone can discern the condition of the heart.  How do I repent?  I start by thanking the Lord for each and every problem!  I thank Him not for the problem but for what He will accomplish through the problem.

My sweet friend who owns a piece of my heart has been logging her gratitude daily as a FB post.  It began the day after her young grandson was LifeFlighted to Children’s Hospital.  Now that is a testimony!  This is the Father “working ALL things together for good to those who love God and are called according to HIS purpose.”  She is speaking volumes to a large following community about WHO she trusts with the life of this giant piece of her heart.  Gratitude works to move us along in our spiritual journey like NOTHING I have ever experienced.

Just Three Things

Naming three things a day we are grateful for no matter how small or seemingly insignificant can change a life and give you a testimony you never dreamed possible.

So, what are three things (people, places, opportunities, difficulties, illnesses, life events, etc) you are thankful for because God said to be thankful?

Here are mine:

Six years of vulnerability and transparency (blogging)

Friends who pray and walk alongside me in the fire of heartbreak and loneliness

Family that pushes my buttons with The Father’s permission,  so God can teach me to “burn the house down.”

Now it is your turn!

Name three things that are hard: What you are grateful God has allowed in your life for your good and His glory.  He may be using these hard circumstances to bring about the answers to your deepest prayers. 

Give Thanks

As we as a nation stop to give thanks in the coming weeks whether alone or with others, I pray we will seek to be obedient and give thanks IN ALL THINGS (not for all things).  Look for the glimpses God gives that reveal His purpose.  Be attentive to the still small voice of conviction.  Kneel in obedience to do His will.

Three gifts a day doesn’t keep the devil away but it focuses on God the Father and we are less likely to fall into the enemy’s trap of blaming others for our own choices.  

Jesus Himself taught us to pray,  

Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

His will is for us to GIVE THANKS every day of the year.  

Yvonne Jones