I thought I would publish this post about Thanksgiving today instead of waiting until Friday or Saturday when I normally post new blog posts.
I know things are hectic with people cooking meals and getting things ready for family and/or friends for the big meal. I also acknowledge many will not be gathering together due to the coronavirus pandemic that we are in the midst of.
Then there is the big shopping day on Friday that tends to extend into the weekend. Then there is Cyber Monday. Things just take off from here through the end of the year.
I did want to make a post on my blog about Thanksgiving. As I contemplate Thanksgiving Day I have seen posts on social media with people giving thanks in various ways. I have seen posts with people wishing their family and friends a Happy Thanksgiving.
As we enter the thanksgiving season, we turn our thoughts toward being thankful to God for His many blessings upon our lives, and that of our family's, in so many varied ways. Too often we take for granted things in our lives that are there daily and consistently. We don't often stop to give God the praise and thanks He deserves.
For example, how many of us really take time out to thank God for our families, the opportunity to worship with others, our jobs, our homes as well as all the other material blessings that God has so graciously blessed us with? Too often we take these things for granted, just knowing they will always be there when we want or need them. We often get to the point in our lives where we think we are self-sufficient. We have the things we have because we have earned them or we have worked hard for them. Who gave us the good health or the ability to achieve our goals and dreams?
If we neglect to give thanks for the tangible things in our lives, how much more do we neglect to give thanks for our spiritual heritage? If we're not careful, we will find ourselves making a mockery of thanksgiving and what its all about.
Celebrating thanksgiving and giving thanks to God is more than a once a year ritual. It should be to the Christian, especially, a very vital and normal part of our lives - something we do on a daily basis. Attempting to exhaust our thanks only on Thanksgiving Day makes giving God thanks a mockery. We are admonished in Scripture, "In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you" (1 Thess. 5:18). Notice he said everything - not just the good things, but everything! That can be a bit difficult to do from time to time.
Another thing that comes to mind that would make giving thanks to God a mockery is thanks-giving without thank-living. Are we being pious for just one day of the year? Are we putting on a front so as to show others how "spiritual" we are? Are we just playing a role or are we living what we are saying? Think about it.
The true thanksgiving spirit may be found in these words, "What shall I render unto the Lord for all His benefits toward me? I will take the cup of salvation and call upon the name of the Lord" (Psalm 116:12-13). Let's make giving thanks to God a way of life.
Until next time...enjoy the journey!
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