Thanksgiving
It is good to give thanks to the Lord, And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High; To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning, And Your faithfulness every night,
Psalms 92:1-2 (New King James Version)
And in the midst of everything be always giving thanks, for this is God’s perfect plan for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:18 (The Passion Translation)
I recently stumbled upon an old journal entry that had a profound prayer. It was written three years ago – almost to the date (August 3, 2018). A gift from the past, to bless us in the present – here’s a part of it:
Everything you do, you do well. You are the creator but you are also a finisher. You don’t leave things undone. You are not fleeting. You are not flee-ing. You are dedicated and committed to your plan and your plan involves me...thus you are committed to me. I trust that you will complete what you began in a glorious and incredible way. I choose to focus on what is in front of me and to allow you to do what you do – which is be a great and meticulous seamstress. You knit things together so perfectly.
Shine your light. Allow me to experience your light in every way possible. Thank you for walking with me. For sharing with me. For being present with me. For granting me life. For sending life giving opportunities & people. For watching me. For forgiving me. For loving me in-spite of. For washing me clean. For covering me. For supporting me. For telling me no. For closing doors. For direction. For rerouting me. For not giving up on me. Thank you for putting me back together. Thank you for restoration. Thank you for refreshing. Thank you for truth. Thank you for another chance. Thank you for seeing value in me. Thank you for giving me greater worth by way of allowing your spirit to abide in me. Thank you for caring enough about me to commit yourself to me. Thank you for a hope and a future. Thank you for seeing me. Thank you for seeing more in me. Thank you for putting your hands to the wheel and being my potter. Thank you for the molding and the shaping. Thank you for the pain, for without it I would lack full understanding of the sweetness of your blessings. Thank you for making me better. Thank you for purpose. Thank you that winning is inevitable simply because I roll with you. Your faithfulness is unmatched. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
When I was reunited with this prayer by way of a random search for something totally unrelated, it felt as if I could have written it today.
There are two main words used to define thanksgiving in the Old Testament: yada which means to throw, to cast, to worship with extended hands or to confess and toda which is a derivative of yada, and very similarly means confession, an extension of the hands, as well as a choir of worshippers and adoration.
Scripture tells us to express our thankfulness for God’s lovingkindness by day and night! The right time to be thankful and cast our adoration to God is always now. The right time to speak well of God’s goodness is now! It may not always seem like it, but there is always something to be thankful for. It also tells us that in the midst of everything, we ought to give thanks to God. Just think about all the millions of things happening around you, whether in your personal space, indirectly, in our nation, or our world at large…I get overwhelmed just thinking about it all. But the scripture tells us that even in those things, we should be giving thanks. A part of God’s will for us is to be thankful people.
While thanksgiving is a celebration and acknowledgement of God’s lovingkindness, it’s also a guard. It’s a guard against discontentment, discouragement, self-centeredness, greed, bitterness, hard heartedness, envy, comparison, and even complaining. It’s also a powerful warfare tactic (but that’s a teaching for another day). Thanksgiving is one of the ways we can keep our hearts pure, tender, and open before God.
Expressing thankfulness to God is a form of worship. Maybe one day I will do a full devotion on worship, but in its purest sense, the word most used for worship means to BOW. Thanksgiving is a way to bow before a perfect and sovereign God. This week I want us to practice new ways to express thanksgiving to God….let’s get it!
REFLECT & RESPOND
Write a list of the things you normally thank God for. Add 20 more. Be creative!
Challenge: Identify a difficult situation that has been stubborn/resistant, deferred, disappointing and/or painful – what can you find to be thankful for in that situation?
Find five scriptures that provide unique ways and/or words in which to express your thankfulness to God.
What do you experience when you focus on the things for which you are thankful? What do you notice is different?
Begin keeping an answered prayers list this week. If you already have one, update it!
Identify three things you don’t currently have, but are believing God for. Begin to thank God for them as if they arrived via Amazon (or your favorite delivery service) tuh-day!
PRAY
My prayer today is simple: THANK YOU. The truth is, if I had ten thousand tongues, it still would not be enough to adequately thank you for all you have been and all you have done. But with what I have, I offer up my thanksgiving unto you.
Amen.
