Word of the Week - Thanksgiving
Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His love endures forever. Let them give thanks to the Lord for His unfailing love and His wonderful deeds for mankind, for He satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things. Psalm 107:1,8-9
Thanksgiving defined by Webster is; the act of giving thanks; a prayer expressing gratitude; a public acknowledgment or celebration of divine goodness. I love Thanksgiving and the fact that we as a nation set aside a day to give thanks and acknowledge our blessings both individually, as a family and as a country. It is by far my favorite holiday, a time to slow down to “express gratitude and acknowledge and celebrate divine goodness”. Not to mention it is the opening weekend of duck season, thank you Lord for your awesome creation, especially ducks😊.In the busy and fast paced world we live in day to day, it is easy to go from one thing to the next focused on solving problems and dealing with the concerns and challenges of life. This is our natural inclination but not necessarily God’s will for us and not always God’s best for us. By focusing on the challenging issues of life, which will always be there this side of heaven, we often lose perspective on the blessings of life and God’s goodness towards us, which can easily lead to the trap of despair, bitterness, envy, depression etc, this is bad thinking. Or, we can choose the Lord’s way, which is to “Give Thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” 1 Thessalonians 5:16. This approach leads to peace, hope, joy, encouragement etc., a life giving perspective. This is a simple truth but can be hard to live without proper order, prayerful reflection and some self-discipline. There is no question that we will reap what we sow in this very important area of life. Therefore, I challenge you this week to begin each day (First Fruits/Priority) by acknowledging God’s goodness by counting your blessings and giving thanks to Him. Literally naming specific things in your life that you are grateful for. No matter how bad things are we can always find something to be Thankful for. God loves it when we enter His presence with praise and thanksgiving, it blesses Him but it also really blesses Us. “for He satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things”I pray you and your family had wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoyed some quality time together giving thanks and counting your blessings.-Duane