Enjoying the Journey
Posts Tagged ‘Thanksgiving’
How To Say “Thank You”
Several years ago I had the joy of speaking to a large group of children on the subject of thanksgiving. In preparation I learned how to say thank you in several languages. While I am quite sure that my pronunciation was not perfect, we had fun teaching the kids to say thanks in Japanese, Chinese, Arabic, Italian, Spanish, German, French, and Russian. To this day it is the only word I know in most of those languages! Sometimes the hardest thing we have to do is learn to say thank you in our own language. As a small child I remember my parents giving me something and quickly asking, “What do you say?” The longer I live I am convinced…
Read MoreThankful In Difficult Days
God’s people are commanded to give thanks at all times and in all circumstances – not when we feel like it. Praise is a choice and gratitude is a discipline. Thanks doesn’t begin in the emotion, it begins in the will. Will we obey? “Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:20). “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Every good fruit grows in the garden of gratitude. When we give God thanks the Lord works in every direction… Only God gets the glory. Praise is a humbling thing, a recognition that we are…
Read MoreThanksgiving Meditations
Through the years I have written a number of brief articles on the subject of gratitude. From time to time we all must be reminded how good God has been and how worthy He is of our praise! I thought that today you may enjoy reading one of these Bible meditations in your personal devotional time. Perhaps you could read one with your family as you gather to give thanks. My Thanksgiving List In One Sentence God’s Greatest Provision Why I Am Grateful For What I Never Got For Thanksgiving Day WHO Are You Thankful For? Don’t just “be thankful” – “give thanks!” Personally, intentionally, specifically set aside time today to give God praise and praise Him to others. We…
Read MoreGrateful People Are Always In The Minority
All month on Enjoying the Journey we have been studying the life of thankfulness. Around many tables today people will share a list of things for which they are grateful. On this Thanksgiving Day I am taking a few moments to reflect on one question: Am I truly a thankful person? Are you? You might be surprised to find that grateful people have always been in the minority. It is more natural to grumble and groan than to give thanks. In the Old Testament the Lord sent twelve spies in to the land to spy out all that He had provided for them. He didn’t need their opinion or their idea. He just wanted them to see it and share…
Read MoreMy New Favorite Way To Say Thank You
Many years ago I learned how to say thank you in a variety of different languages. I am no linguist. The languages that I have taken have not taken on me! But it was enjoyable to learn how to say thank you in Spanish, German, Arabic, Japanese, Chinese, Italian, Russian, and French. I have used this in my travels and found that everyone enjoys a thank you…especially in their own language. This week I returned from speaking in a prayer conference in Quebec, Canada. It was my first time to this French-speaking province and I was truly blessed by the kindness of God’s people there. The family of God is wonderful wherever you go. My messages were all translated into…
Read MoreA Season Of Thanks
There are many commands given to God’s people. Each of the Lord’s commands are given for our good and His glory. This is certainly the case for the command most often repeated in Scripture. More than any other admonition in the Word of God we are commanded to praise the Lord! Why does God repeat this so frequently? Praise is purifying. When we begin to praise we come into the presence of the Lord, and His presence purifies every other part of life! Praising Christians are kept happy, holy, and humble. As we enter the month of November there will be much talk of giving thanks. Thanksgiving must be more than a holiday. This season of thanks should be a…
Read MoreThursday’s Thought: “FOR THANKSGIVING DAY”
I must be getting more sentimental in my old age. Over the last few years I have developed a great love for poetry. In so many ways it expresses the deepest feelings of the soul. It is my conviction that this is why the Holy Spirit used poetry in the Word of God to articulate some of the deepest truths surrounding our relationship to God. Poetry is one of God’s beautiful messengers. In my office I keep some volumes of famous and favorite poems. This week I came across a poem that I had never read. It was written by one of the truly great Bible teachers of another generation, Dr. James M. Gray. As I read it for the…
Read MoreWednesday’s Thanksgiving Thought: Why I Am Grateful For What I Never Got
Families will gather around tables this week and briefly mention the many blessings for which they are grateful to God. For most of us the emphasis will be on the good things we have received. God truly has given us so much. This Thanksgiving I am thanking God for something else. I am grateful for what I never received. I have not received what I should have received. You see, I should have been in hell right now. But I am not there…and I am never going there! God in His mercy has withheld the judgment that I deserve. Christ took it so that I would never have to. I thank God. I have not received what I could have…
Read MoreMonday’s Thanksgiving Thought
Gratitude begins vertical and becomes horizontal. As we offer thanks to the Source of every good gift, we are reminded of the many channels that He uses to deliver them. Sometimes it is easy to recognize blessings from a distance and miss the ones that are right in front of us. Permit me to share an example from my own life… I am more grateful to God than ever for the wife He chose for me. In the words of Proverbs 19:14, “A prudent wife is from the LORD.” There is no way that I could do what I am doing with my life without Tammy. The other day she picked me up from the airport (again) with a smile…
Read MoreA Free Resource for a Month Of Thanks
Dr. Bob Jones, Sr. used to say, “When gratitude dies on the altar of a man’s heart he is well-nigh gone.” There is no way to underestimate the power of thankfulness, in a heart or in a home! For believers, thanksgiving should not be a single day – it should be a way of life. Later in November millions of people will set aside a day to reflect on their blessings and give thanks. What a powerful thing it would be if we gave an entire month to thanksgiving. At least the part that matters…I don’t think we could handle that much turkey or football for a month! As many of you know, we have been offering free, monthly, downloadable…
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