“In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”
For another day, for the privilege to live in a free country, for friends and family, for the knowledge of God’s Love in my life … and so much more.
When Thanksgiving was made a national holiday, our country was still reeling from a terrible war and beginning to heal from the inside out. It didn’t seem that there was too much to be thankful for; however, Americans from every walk of life found something they could point to and say, “Thank you, Lord.”
Today, we are in troubling times. We have military men and women deployed overseas, we have a pandemic that has changed our basic way of living, we all know someone who has tested positive and the fears of coming down with the virus leaves many shuttered at home. Is there anything we can be thankful for in 2020?
I am thankful for the renewed passion and purpose that I have found in my service to the Lord. I am thankful for the removal of many distractions as I have had to quarantine and live with limited public exposure. I am thankful that we can have church, when in years past, it was easy to take that privilege for granted. I am thankful for friends, and although we may have to continue staying apart, it is good to know that I have friends who miss gathering with me as much as I have missed gathering with them. I am thankful for every person who has recovered from this terrible illness. How quickly loved-ones can be taken from us, it is a blessing when we are given the opportunity to see them recover.
I am thankful for a community that has come together and has rejected the ideas of division and hate. I am thankful for the free and fair election process that has proven itself to work flawlessly (at least in our county.)
I am thankful for the Bible and the peace that Jesus gives when we trust and obey Him. I am thankful for the salvation of my soul, knowing that when (not if) I die that I have positive assurance of my eternal home in Heaven. I am thankful for Jesus, who made all this possible.
As you sit at the Thanksgiving meal this year, pause to reflect and respond to all the good and perfect gifts given to you by God. Whether they can or cannot be with you at the table, take a moment to be reminded of friends and family that mean so much, especially after the kind of year we all have had.
A good idea might be to have those who have gathered with you to give thanks for three things they have been blessed to enjoy, in spite of the difficulties of 2020.
We do have much to be thankful for and we ought to take the time to share and express our gratitude to God Almighty Who has given us all things freely to enjoy!
The greatest gift for which we all can and should be grateful is what Jesus Christ did on the cross for our sins. Jesus died and was buried and rose again to offer you and me forgiveness of sins and an eternal Home in Heaven.
See you in church!
God Bless!
(Pastor Jones can be reached by email pastor@faithbaptistchurch.us. Follow him on Twitter @PastorTonyJones or visit an upcoming service at Faith Baptist Church … “The Church on the Hill.”)
