Give Thanks and Receive Joy!

This past week-end, I bet I heard thank you a hundred times, at least. Most of the students who came through the meal lines were eager to say those words. And our youth evangelist, Jerod McPherson, came through to thank all the volunteers for their generosity. Not once, but several times.

To be told you are appreciated is akin to being given a huge present! Each thank you lights up the face of the recipient and causes them to hold their shoulders a light straighter and return the gift with a smile! Appreciation lightens the load. Gratefulness eases burdens and cares. Would we have continued to serve the Lord had the students not said thank you? Of course. Would we have kept being volunteers if Jerod had not taken the time to come by and speak to each of us personally? Of course. Because we serve a risen Lord, and He’s the one who gives us our reward.

But the special, continual thanks made for more joy, more strength, more eagerness! It also incites us to return the favor. “You’re welcome!” “Thank you!” and more are given as thankfulness gifts are exchanged.
Perhaps you’ve been under a load of troubles, bondage or care. You’ve tried to keep working, keep striving, keep earning your rewards but the load is getting so heavy that you’re just about to sit down and give up. After all, why should you do anything that garners no kindness? Maybe you figure it doesn’t matter to anyone because no one has said a thing to you. Remember, God’s thankfulness isn’t a matter of being perfect, gathering possessions or having things work out the way we want. Rather, thankfulness is an attitude of the heart.

Oh beloved, you matter incredibly to God! And, because you matter to Him, what you do matters as well! Because He has given you everything you need for life and godliness – everything – then it only stands to reason that thanksgiving and praise and glory and honor are due to the One Who made it all possible. Run to the Lord this morning and give Him the glory He is due! Give thanks to the One Who gives you breath and strength to be His hands and feet in this lost and dying world. You may be the only one who seems to know or care what you’re doing, but God sees it all. And, because God sees you, He rewards you as well. His rewards are peace, joy, faithfulness, kindness, gentleness, self-control and more. Who else can take an ungrateful heart and replace it with thankfulness? Only the One Who loves you and cares for you eternally. If you’re looking for applause, look into Jesus’ Wonderful face! If you’re holding back on thankfulness, look at the same Precious face! God loves you and holds you securely in His heart forever!

Psalm 50:14 Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God, and keep the vows you made to the Most High.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.

Hebrews 12:28 Since we are receiving a Kingdom that is unshakable, let us be thankful and please God by worshiping Him with holy fear and awe.

1 Corinthians 16:18 They have been a wonderful encouragement to me, as they have been to you. You must show your appreciation to all who serve so well.

2 Thessalonians 2:3 Dear brothers and sisters, we can’t help but thank God for you, because your faith is flourishing and your love for one another is growing.

Ruth 2:12 May the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge, reward you fully for what you have done.”

Luke 6:45 The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart.

Let's Give Thanks to the Lord Above!

This week I had the wonderful opportunity to take one of my grandchildren to school. It’s always fun to have a morning with children for they find delight in just being with you. We looked at the heavy frost and he exclaimed that it looked like snow. He also knew where all the best Christmas lights were from home to school.  He wanted to sing Christmas songs too, so we found a radio station that was playing them and listened.  We even joined in as “Here Comes Santa Claus” was belted out by Gene Autry from 1947.  As I listened I heard lyrics I was not familiar with. The phrase, “Santa Claus knows we’re all God’s children – that makes everything right”. Wow. Then still listening I heard another phrase, “Peace on earth will come to all if we just follow the Light. So let’s give thanks to the Lord above, cause Santa Claus is coming tonight”.  I don’t ever remember singing those lyrics that included God in our celebrations. My daughter said she had asked me about the lyrics recently, but I guess until I listened myself without a lot of distractions I didn’t truly hear them.

We live in a world that is trying desperately to drown all sounds and sights of the Lord of Heaven and Earth from our midst. From manger scenes to songs of the season, God is ignored, despised, rejected and removed.  Not only at the holidays, but in everyday living as well God is relegated to the coffee table or the bookcase or the occasional Sunday morning. Perhaps like I forgot the lyrics to this song, you have forgotten the lyrics God spoke into your life. You may be trying to go it alone. You may have not realized when you walked away, but you certainly feel the pain of the loneliness of leaving Him out. It’s never too late to call out to God, for our country and for ourselves.  His hearts’ desire is that we return to our Creator with our whole hearts. You may hear a lot about God, but unless you listen personally, there are many distractions that are eager to lead you away from His presence.

Oh beloved, why not take a moment this morning to renew your fellowship with the One Who gave you life! You were no accident, you are no mistake, you are not a problem, neither are you unlovable. In His sight, you are precious, beautiful, worthy and a exquisite gift to this world. Hear Him calling you? Love songs in the air, sung by the Heavenly Host, are calling out to you today. Stop and rejoice in the Truth of your life – you are cherished, you are blessed, you are forgiven, you are ransomed, you have been made honorable and you are right in His sight. Now that’s worth giving thanks to the Lord above!

Joel 2:13 Rend your heart and not your garments.  Return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and He relents from sending calamity.

I Peter 1:18-20 For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And the ransom He paid was not mere gold or silver. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.  God chose Him as your ransom long before the world began, but He has now revealed Him to you in these last days.

Romans 8:1 So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.

I Thessalonians 1:4 We know, dear brothers and sisters, that God loves you and has chosen you to be His own people.

Psalm 36:7 How precious is your unfailing love, O God! All humanity finds shelter
in the shadow of your wings.

I Corinthians 1:30 God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made Him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; He made us pure and holy, and He freed us from sin.

Praise God for Fleas? He Has a Purpose for Everything

If you haven’t read the book The Hiding Place I would encourage you to do so. It’s the story of the struggles of a young woman and her family during the holocaust.  Corrie Ten Boom and her sister suffered terribly in the concentration camps where her father and sister subsequently died. Corrie alone survived to be set free. She went on to write her story and speak across the continents on, of all things, God’s love.  One of the stories in her book stands out to me. Corrie and her sister were Christians and they loved to share the Bible with others, even while in prison.  The guard would come into the barracks and regularly harass and do terrible things to the women. But the barracks that Corrie and her sister were in was full of fleas.  They were horrible! Corrie regularly complained about them.  Her sister Betsie finally had an answer as Betsie suggested they give thanks to God for the fleas. Although Corrie was astonished at this idea she soon realized her sister was right.  Because of the fleas, the guards would not come into their area. This gave them free opportunity to share Christ with the women there.  Those women, in such foul circumstances, were drawn to the Bible studies as though it was all they had, and indeed it truly was.  Through those fleas, God protected the women from abuse and harassment.  Dozens of desperate women were free to hear the comforting, hope-giving Word of God.  Through those fleas, God protected the women from much worse things and made sure they had their deepest, truest needs met.

We all have “fleas” in our lives. Those things that seem to cause such hardship, harassment and trouble.  We have the choice in our circumstances to curse God for them or to give thanks to Him in them. While hard things do happen and trials do come, we can rejoice regardless of our circumstances. It is only in giving each thing to God and seeing Him work in spite of them that we find both peace and purpose.

Oh beloved, are you tired of cursing your situation? Are you finding that you are tired and worn out from concentrating only on those “fleas”?  The Lord speaks to you this morning and He says, through His Word, “Give me thanks in all things” for I inhabit your praises. I love you son, I love you daughter and I can use each circumstance to let you highlight my glory and spread the Gospel to all.  I have a purpose for your life and it is good. If you will trust Me today I will take the “fleas” of your life and turn them into stepping stones for your ministry.  Trust Me. I have you by the hand and I will relieve you of your burdens as you thank Me!

Run to Him this morning and give thanks! He loves you and He’s for you and He wants to use you to share Himself with others and that’s all that really matters!

I Thessalonians 5:18  Amplified   Thank [God] in everything [no matter what the circumstances may be, be thankful and give thanks], for this is the will of God for you [who are] in Christ Jesus [the Revealer and Mediator of that will].

Psalm 100:4  Enter His gates with thanksgiving; go into His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name.

Ephesians 5:20  And give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.