Give Thanks...

People are forgetful. People look for keys all over their house just to realize that they’ve been carrying them in their back pocket. Have you done this? You dash into your room to get something and the moment you set your foot in the room, you forgot why you were in there. And you back step hoping it’ll remind you? We are forgetful people. 

God once told Israelites not to forget Him once they settle in the “land flowing with milk and honey!” But as you know, it will not take them long before they needed a reminder, and I am afraid that we need it as well.

In the Psalms, God often tells the whole earth to make a joyful noise to the Lord. The message of thanksgiving is so wide and deep, it applies to every human being in every era in the every life stage! When we give thanks together to God, it breaks down barriers between people and brings about unity.

But there is also a real danger in this season of how we determine our thanksgiving, on the basis of how much we have.

“Do I have enough turkey? Do I have enough money? Am I healthy? Is my car okay? How much bonus did I get this year? Am I getting a raise?” And we let these things determine whether we are or aren’t thankful. 

But we are reminded in the word of God that these things are fleeting. They come and go. As Job once said, “The Lord gives and the Lord takes...” The only thing that we have for sure is our relationship with the Lord and the relationship we have with the brothers and sisters in Christ.

Alex Haley, the author of Roots, had an unusual picture hanging on his office wall. It was a picture of a turtle on top of a fence post. When asked, “Why is that there?” Alex Haley answered, “Every time I write something significant, every time I read my words and think that they are wonderful, and begin to feel proud of myself, I look at the turtle on top of the fence post and remember that he didn’t get there on his own. He had help.”

That is the basis of thankfulness to remember that we got here with the help of God, and that he provided every blessings we have.

This year as we close this month of thanksgiving, let us remember the Lord who provided all things for us. Let us remember people who enriched our life and give meaning in the daily grinds of life. Count your blessings and give thanks to God and to each other.

Psalms 50:14 | “Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay your vows unto the most High.”.