IN EVERYTHING GIVE THANKS FOR THIS IS THE WILL OF GOD

 

Give Thanks to the Lord 

Myrtle Thompson

I was hit with reality when I heard the words "Thanksgiving canceled," struck by how little giving of thanks must mean to some of today's leaders. 

Then I remembered, Oh, they mean "turkey day" activities. 

Whew! Thanksgiving is always a personal thing and we are still free to voice our praise and thanks to God.

I opened my Bible to the Psalms and Bible writers to see what King David and people of millennia past had to say about the giving of thanks. 

I found no mention of "turkey day" or sports or other activities. 

But there was a wonderful Thanksgiving reminder in Nehemiah's day: 

"Go your way, eat the fat and drink the sweet and send portions to them for whom nothing is prepared, for this day is holy unto our Lord. Neither be sorry for the joy of the Lord is your strength." Nehemiah 8:10.

That is the Thanksgiving message. 

In our day, we are being denied a gathering as they had, but we can still have a whole day, a whole time of Thanksgiving, any day, any time. 

It is a way of remembering God's blessings on us as a people, as a nation and even as individuals. 

We can be alone and thank God. 

That should be a comfort to those unable to gather in 2020.

In the New Testament, Paul reminded us, 

"In everything give thanks for this is the will of God..." 

What? Give thanks for a virus that has captured and placed us in "no man's land?" 

Put us in uncertainty about the future? 

It is not the first time we have faced incomprehensible situations. 

The difference may be that when we give thanks to our Creator God, we recognize Him for Who He is. 

It makes possible our belief that He is actually in control of the world He created. 

Almost every book of the Bible makes this very clear. 

We are reminded of the many times the tide was turned from a developing wave that threatened to devour us.

Let's not cancel THANKS-giving even if we cancel the turkey day activities. 

God can provide us with freedom from fear and concerns this year when we give thanks to the Omni-God, the all-sufficient One, wise, powerful over the forces of evil, and present when we come to Him with our needs. 

We don't need a day of thanksgiving; we need a life filled with thanks.

Myrtle V. Thompson, TEAM missionary (ret.), educator, writer, age 92 and still busy for Jesus! Contact