Give Thanks!

Scripture

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

 ¹⁶ Rejoice always, ¹⁷ pray without ceasing, ¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.  (NRSVUE)

Psalm 107

 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!
    His faithful love endures forever.
² Has the Lord redeemed you? Then speak out!
    Tell others he has redeemed you from your enemies.
³ For he has gathered the exiles from many lands,
    from east and west,
    from north and south.

⁴ Some wandered in the wilderness,
    lost and homeless.
⁵ Hungry and thirsty,
    they nearly died.
⁶ “Lord, help!” they cried in their trouble,
    and he rescued them from their distress.
⁷ He led them straight to safety,
    to a city where they could live.
⁸ Let them praise the Lord for his great love
    and for the wonderful things he has done for them.
⁹ For he satisfies the thirsty
    and fills the hungry with good things.

¹⁰ Some sat in darkness and deepest gloom,
    imprisoned in iron chains of misery.
¹¹ They rebelled against the words of God,
    scorning the counsel of the Most High.
¹² That is why he broke them with hard labor;
    they fell, and no one was there to help them.
¹³ “Lord, help!” they cried in their trouble,
    and he saved them from their distress.
¹⁴ He led them from the darkness and deepest gloom;
    he snapped their chains.
¹⁵ Let them praise the Lord for his great love
    and for the wonderful things he has done for them.
¹⁶ For he broke down their prison gates of bronze;
    he cut apart their bars of iron.

¹⁷ Some were fools; they rebelled
    and suffered for their sins.
¹⁸ They couldn’t stand the thought of food,
    and they were knocking on death’s door.
¹⁹ “Lord, help!” they cried in their trouble,
    and he saved them from their distress.
²⁰ He sent out his word and healed them,
    snatching them from the door of death.
²¹ Let them praise the Lord for his great love
    and for the wonderful things he has done for them.
²² Let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving
    and sing joyfully about his glorious acts.

²³ Some went off to sea in ships,
    plying the trade routes of the world.
²⁴ They, too, observed the Lord’s power in action,
    his impressive works on the deepest seas.
²⁵ He spoke, and the winds rose,
    stirring up the waves.
²⁶ Their ships were tossed to the heavens
    and plunged again to the depths;
    the sailors cringed in terror.
²⁷ They reeled and staggered like drunkards
    and were at their wits’ end.
²⁸ “Lord, help!” they cried in their trouble,
    and he saved them from their distress.
²⁹ He calmed the storm to a whisper
    and stilled the waves.
³⁰ What a blessing was that stillness
    as he brought them safely into harbor!
³¹ Let them praise the Lord for his great love
    and for the wonderful things he has done for them.
³² Let them exalt him publicly before the congregation
    and before the leaders of the nation.

³³ He changes rivers into deserts,
    and springs of water into dry, thirsty land.
³⁴ He turns the fruitful land into salty wastelands,
    because of the wickedness of those who live there.
³⁵ But he also turns deserts into pools of water,
    the dry land into springs of water.
³⁶ He brings the hungry to settle there
    and to build their cities.
³⁷ They sow their fields, plant their vineyards,
    and harvest their bumper crops.
³⁸ How he blesses them!
    They raise large families there,
    and their herds of livestock increase.

³⁹ When they decrease in number and become impoverished
    through oppression, trouble, and sorrow,
⁴⁰ the Lord pours contempt on their princes,
    causing them to wander in trackless wastelands.
⁴¹ But he rescues the poor from trouble
    and increases their families like flocks of sheep.
⁴² The godly will see these things and be glad,
    while the wicked are struck silent.
⁴³ Those who are wise will take all this to heart;
    they will see in our history the faithful love of the Lord.  (NLT)

Devotion

 You may have noticed that the blog has been on hiatus for the past few weeks.  That will change when Advent rolls around and we transition to having a reading every day until Christmas. With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I felt it was necessary to stay something about gratitude.

Take away our associations with the holiday, and the word "thanksgiving" is defined as a prayer or other expression of gratitude in acknowledgment of the benefits or favors a person has received--especially when that expression is being lifted up to God.  In other words, "thanksgiving" literally means to "give thanks" for the blessings we have received.  Paul's letter to the Thessalonians to give God that thanks in all every single circummstance we face.

One of my favorite seminary professors created a syllabus that made practicing different spiritual disciplines as part of our homework.  One of my favorite--also one most challenging--disciplines was the acct of lifting up a daily prayer of Thanksgiving to God. We were challenged to make sure that each prayer was specific, thoughtful, and reflective of where we had noticed God being at work in our lives that day.  And we were to take our time on them.

It was  easy to offer up prayers of thanksgiving to God on the good days....but it was a lot more challenging on the bad or mediocre ones.  There were times when some of us felt more cursed than blessed.  On days like that, we had to rack our brains for something--anything--for which to feel thankful.  Perhaps you have been in the same position at some point.  

Psalm 107 reminds us that though we may have trouble noticing it at the time, our faithful God continues to bless us in every circumstance.  Whenever we are struggling and whatever we are struggling with, we can be assured that God has heard our cries for help and is swooping in to save us.  This is true even when we are at our lowest point and starving for aid.  Even when are hopelessly lost and completely overwhelmed.  Even when we feel like we are about to die from sickness, grief, or despair.  Even when all the world seems to have turned against us.  And though we may have trouble believing ourselves to be blessed when our hearts are heavy with fear or sorrow, the reminder that God is taking care of us and will bring us out of that situation is more than enough reason to keep giving thanks.

Finding ourselves challenged to give God thanks when we didn't feel particularly blessed was a life-changing experiencing.   It helped my classmates and me notice the blessings  that God had embedded in each moment of pain, frustration, etc. that we faced.  And the more we noticed those hidden blessings, the more we realized how present God truly was and how much we had to be thankful for:

• When we felt overwhelmed by course work of field education requirements, we learned to give God thanks for the help and support of knowledgeable people.
• When we felt uncertain in our callings, we learned to give thanks for the ways God was helping us discern a pathway forward.
• When mistakes or sinful decisions caused us to fall flat on our faces, we learned to give thanks for all the previous times that God had shown us forgiveness before picking us back up and setting us on right pathways--and we reminded ourselves that God was in the process of doing so again.
  
• When we were grief-stricken, we learned to give thanks for the time we had with those we loved, the time we still have with others who can offer us love and comfort now, and the promises that we will be reunited with those we so dearly wish to see again. 
• We learned to give God thanks in all things, because through we may not always notice it at first, God is with us in all things.  And God is always coming to our rescue.

 This Thanksgiving, I challenge each of us to take 5 to 10 minutes out of your day to reflect on your year--the good, the bad, and the seemingly indifferent.  What blessings can do you notice? Where do you see glimpses of God's presence?  If you feel so inclined, think back to previous years and incorporate those blessings as well.  Next, consider your present.  How is God blessings you now?  Finally, look forward to the year ahead.  How might God bless you in the future?  And what hope can you find there?  And when you are ready, thank God for all of it.

I hope that your Thanksgiving is full of love, trust, and gratitude.  If it isn't', I pray that you will be in a better place to feel those emotions in the not--too-distant future.  And I give thanks that not no matter what we are going through or how we feel about it, we are continuing to receive blessings from our ever-faithful and ever-gracious LORD.

 

Prayer 

For today's, prayer, you are invited to listen to play the hymn below ("Now Thank We All Our God") and reflect upon the blessings God has given you--both in good times and in bad.  For each blessing that comes to mind, say "Thank you, Lord."