Believing in Thanksgiving (Nov 22)

I would like to share with you today a reading selection from Chris Tiegreen's Walk With God.

Gratitude Believes

Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always. - Psalm 105:4

Faith without thankfulness lacks strength and fortitude. - John Henry Jowett

Faith without thankfulness is like a huge, unanswered question. It come to God with possibilities, but has no assurance that He will address them well. It knows He can do things, but it doesn't know that He will. Forgetting the God of the past, it tries in vain to figure out the God of the present and the future. It is weak.

Faith with thankfulness doesn't just look for the Lord, it looks to the Lord. It knows who He is. It remembers past mercies and bases today's needs on their proven source. It comes to God with possibilities, not knowing how He will address them, but knowing He will address them well. It is not a tentative question about God; it is a knowledgeable statement. It understands His grace.

We need no reminders to seek God; it is a natural impulse, especially when we're in trouble. No, our problem is remembering how to seek Him. Paul's letters are abundant in instructions to utter prayers filled with thankfulness. The faith that Jesus always applauded was a faith that acknowledged up front who He was. We may have lots of questions when we come to God, and we may be confused about many spiritual issues. But we have no reason to ever come to Him questioning His goodness. Our gratitude for what He has done in the past will prepare us to know what kinds of things He will do in the future. It will get us in sync with His heart.

Are your prayers filled with fear and confusion? Do you wonder if God will be good to you? There is no need for such uncertainty. Scripture is filled with His goodness, and so is your life. Look between the hardships and the pain and see that He has granted life and redemption. There are always blessings to find—far more than we can count. Gratitude makes faith strong. Thankful people understand the God who is strong. They see His face and are not afraid. They aren't just hoping for His goodness. They're expecting it. (Tiegreen, 330)

Thanksgiving Day is coming up this week and we always use that time to think of things for which we are thankful. Usually, I'd say that if we were to make a list, we'd probably fill that list with all kinds of good and happy things. I doubt that we'd put anything on there that we didn't like. After all, how can we be thankful for something that we don't like? Well, then we read scriptures like 1 Thessalonians 5:18 - “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” - and we realize that even some things that we don't necessarily like need to be on that thanksgiving list. We then discover that all things have a purpose and that God works all things for good. (Romans 8:28 - “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”) When we can see God's purpose through all things and in that be truly grateful, then we can truly believe that He is who He says He is and He will do what He says He will do. When we are thankful, we can believe!

Praise God today! Praise God in all things! Be thankful for what He has done and how He has been working in your life (even if it sometimes hurts in the process). And, remembering the works of God, you can believe when you pray. You can believe when you wait for the answer. You can believe for tomorrow!

In thankfulness, believe!

(1) Tiegreen, Chris. The One Year Walk with God Devotional: 365 Daily Bible Readings to Transform Your Mind. Carol Stream, Ill: Tyndale House Publishers, 2004.