“Let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:28-29 NIV).
How thankful are you for all the blessings you have in your life? Do you thank God daily for His love for you? This is the season to give thanks and to remember all the blessings in your life. But every day should be a time to give thanks to God. If you are like me, you start your prayers with all your requests concerning your loved ones. I have decided to make a list since I have a tendency to forget these days. But I am also going to make a list of blessings. Too many times it is easy to dwell on the needs so much that we don’t focus on what God has done for us. I think it is important for us to take time each day to be thankful. When you feel really down, take out a piece of paper and start writing down the things you are thankful for. If you have a roof over your head and food to eat, then you are very fortunate since many people in the world don’t have a home or food.
Take Paul and Silas as an example of praising God even in dire circumstances. They were thrown into prison because they were preaching about Jesus. They were severely flogged and beaten before they were thrown into prison. They prayed and sang hymns to God and God heard them. There was an earthquake and the prison doors opened and the prisoner’s chains came loose. They remained there and were able to witness to the jailor, who was baptized along with his family. Amazing isn’t it? Could you have been praising God in that circumstance? It is something to think about since many Christians today in foreign countries are in prison. We should be thankful that we can worship God freely without the fear of being thrown into prison.
This Thanksgiving take time to make your list of blessings and give the Lord sincere thanks for all He has done for you.
Dear Lord,
We take our blessings for granted every day. Help us to be more thankful every day for all you have done for us. Help us to remember all you did for us in the past, especially when it seems like there is no hope in the present. We know you will never forsake us.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen
