As the American holiday...a "Day of Thanksgiving" approaches, everyone is "talkin' it up', a time to plan...plan...plan. How many people are coming to dinner?....What time are we going to have dinner? Who is bringing sides and desserts?...What pro football games are on and what time do they start? And the thing about all these plans...as it has become our yearly ritual, is that in these days and times people involved seem to change more often..." Uncle Ed has a new wife with the same name as his first wife (Laura)...we will call her Laura #2....Laura#1 is remarried and has an entirely new family...but the kids of Uncle Ed and Laura#1 will be here; my cousin Timothy came "out of the closet" and is bringing someone named "Andrew"....and so on and so on...as the saying goes: "Welcome to America".
So...I have ask the question...Why is it we call it Thanksgiving?...What are we thankful for?...And who are we suppose to be thankful to?
Since rededicating my life to the Lord Jesus in 2007, getting serious as to His call He gave me decades ago: "Follow Me", I have found the Christian lifestyle is one that demands practice...and practice...and more practice, including the practice of giving thanks. I wish I could say it just came naturally after I gave Jesus entrance into my heart...but that would not be true. Often setting aside time to offer up a prayer of Thanksgiving... really is a type of sacrifice because it is a battle of my will...a part of me does not want to do it, yet another part knows I should do it.
The benchmark I have set for myself in reference to taking the time to offer up a prayer of Thanksgiving is this: that this type of prayer becomes a "reflex of the heart"...rather than a "battle of the wills". Yet, with that being said, the more I practice the "art of giving Thanks"... I have noticed there are those moments where the heart does overtake the will, where I look forward to the "Sacrifice of Thanksgiving". It is like a musician who practices for years...and then one day the music he/she plays is simply natural and beautiful to the ear, or like an athlete who trains for years...and one day the goal is attained. Giving thanks from my heart...grows each day I live...and I am grateful for His Grace in my life...for I have learned even the "art of giving thanks"...is a gift from Him.
Jesus spoke one time about taking the time to honor the Lord...in fact any prayers we say must come from the heart. In Matthew 15:8-9 it reads something like this: " People often say they honor Me, yet their hearts are far from Me...they are not even thinking about Me. This type of worship is utterly useless...it's worthless, because they have no desire to follow My Commands. It's all one big cover-up...and the only teachings they follow...are the ones that "suit their fancy".
So, as we plan our day for Thanksgiving, it seems to me it would be a good idea to take some time and be grateful for all we have and lift up a prayer of Thanksgiving...that is supported with a lifestyle that gives honor to Him. Then, it would seem our prayers would have "a bite" to them...meaningful, heartfelt, and with purpose.
In Psalm 50:23...the Sacred Scriptures describes what a real prayer of Thanksgiving should "look like"...one that is a sacrifice from our hearts: " Here is a real Thanksgiving prayer...one that is meaningful and costs you something. It is a prayer that originates from a grateful heart, a heart that is genuine about this type of prayer, and a prayer that gives honor to Me. A prayer of Thanksgiving is one that has a heart determined to obey Me...who choose to walk down the path of life I have made for you...for you will soon find this path is filled with a demonstration of God's glory...operating in your very lives." (Gleaning format)
The Scriptures go further and explain what our hearts should be like when offering a "Thanksgiving Prayer"...a Gleaning from Psalm 51:16-17: " If going through the motions is what you do when offering a prayer of Thanksgiving, and this is your idea of being thankful...wouldn't life be easy?...no demands, no need to change, and no need to be overly concerned as to what the Scriptures desire from us. You don't even need to "put your heart into it" ...just know when to bow your head, when to read the words in a prayer, and to have a serious look about you when you recite the prayer. Yet...prayers like this will not do anything...both for you or in giving honor to the Lord. So, what type of Thanksgiving prayer is meaningful?...Having a genuineness to the words that are spoken?...It is a prayer that comes from a heart that is broken...having sorrow in its depth, and willing to live a lifestyle that does not hurt...You. You always look for a heart that is willing to change and follow Your commands...for when we do...then our Thanksgiving Prayers are ones You never refuse."
The other thing about a "Thanksgiving Prayer", it is not dependent on circumstances...good or bad. Even when times in our lives are tough...this should not prevent us for offering prayers of thanks...we do it anyway!
Look at the pilgrims, 1/2 of the original group that came over on the Mayflower...were dead within a year, the pilgrims had to learn how to hunt new game, catch different species of fish, and learn which crops would grow well in the "New World"...and this all came about with the assistance of Native Americans.
Even at the first Thanksgiving, they had been through a series of tragedies, and although they had been successful in raising their first year of various crops. their supply was still limited and demanded an act of faith...to share what they had with others. The prayers at the first Thanksgiving...had come with a price.
Recently I have been reading on the life of Rose Kennedy, the mother of President John F. Kennedy and Senator Bobby Kennedy, who both had been assassinated while in office. In her journals she had written of her outlook on life after suffering the loss of her 2 sons... describing her thoughts in this matter.. by comparing her life to how birds react after a severe storm.
She wrote of how a terrible storm had caused birds to lose their nests in the trees, lost newborns, and even eggs within the nests for upcoming births. Yet, after the horrendous storm had passed and the winds had calmed and it was quiet in the aftermath...these very birds...began to sing once more.
May our Thanksgiving Prayers...come from our hearts...hearts that desire to please and trust...in Him!
So...I have ask the question...Why is it we call it Thanksgiving?...What are we thankful for?...And who are we suppose to be thankful to?
Since rededicating my life to the Lord Jesus in 2007, getting serious as to His call He gave me decades ago: "Follow Me", I have found the Christian lifestyle is one that demands practice...and practice...and more practice, including the practice of giving thanks. I wish I could say it just came naturally after I gave Jesus entrance into my heart...but that would not be true. Often setting aside time to offer up a prayer of Thanksgiving... really is a type of sacrifice because it is a battle of my will...a part of me does not want to do it, yet another part knows I should do it.
The benchmark I have set for myself in reference to taking the time to offer up a prayer of Thanksgiving is this: that this type of prayer becomes a "reflex of the heart"...rather than a "battle of the wills". Yet, with that being said, the more I practice the "art of giving Thanks"... I have noticed there are those moments where the heart does overtake the will, where I look forward to the "Sacrifice of Thanksgiving". It is like a musician who practices for years...and then one day the music he/she plays is simply natural and beautiful to the ear, or like an athlete who trains for years...and one day the goal is attained. Giving thanks from my heart...grows each day I live...and I am grateful for His Grace in my life...for I have learned even the "art of giving thanks"...is a gift from Him.
Jesus spoke one time about taking the time to honor the Lord...in fact any prayers we say must come from the heart. In Matthew 15:8-9 it reads something like this: " People often say they honor Me, yet their hearts are far from Me...they are not even thinking about Me. This type of worship is utterly useless...it's worthless, because they have no desire to follow My Commands. It's all one big cover-up...and the only teachings they follow...are the ones that "suit their fancy".
So, as we plan our day for Thanksgiving, it seems to me it would be a good idea to take some time and be grateful for all we have and lift up a prayer of Thanksgiving...that is supported with a lifestyle that gives honor to Him. Then, it would seem our prayers would have "a bite" to them...meaningful, heartfelt, and with purpose.
In Psalm 50:23...the Sacred Scriptures describes what a real prayer of Thanksgiving should "look like"...one that is a sacrifice from our hearts: " Here is a real Thanksgiving prayer...one that is meaningful and costs you something. It is a prayer that originates from a grateful heart, a heart that is genuine about this type of prayer, and a prayer that gives honor to Me. A prayer of Thanksgiving is one that has a heart determined to obey Me...who choose to walk down the path of life I have made for you...for you will soon find this path is filled with a demonstration of God's glory...operating in your very lives." (Gleaning format)
The Scriptures go further and explain what our hearts should be like when offering a "Thanksgiving Prayer"...a Gleaning from Psalm 51:16-17: " If going through the motions is what you do when offering a prayer of Thanksgiving, and this is your idea of being thankful...wouldn't life be easy?...no demands, no need to change, and no need to be overly concerned as to what the Scriptures desire from us. You don't even need to "put your heart into it" ...just know when to bow your head, when to read the words in a prayer, and to have a serious look about you when you recite the prayer. Yet...prayers like this will not do anything...both for you or in giving honor to the Lord. So, what type of Thanksgiving prayer is meaningful?...Having a genuineness to the words that are spoken?...It is a prayer that comes from a heart that is broken...having sorrow in its depth, and willing to live a lifestyle that does not hurt...You. You always look for a heart that is willing to change and follow Your commands...for when we do...then our Thanksgiving Prayers are ones You never refuse."
The other thing about a "Thanksgiving Prayer", it is not dependent on circumstances...good or bad. Even when times in our lives are tough...this should not prevent us for offering prayers of thanks...we do it anyway!
Even at the first Thanksgiving, they had been through a series of tragedies, and although they had been successful in raising their first year of various crops. their supply was still limited and demanded an act of faith...to share what they had with others. The prayers at the first Thanksgiving...had come with a price.
Recently I have been reading on the life of Rose Kennedy, the mother of President John F. Kennedy and Senator Bobby Kennedy, who both had been assassinated while in office. In her journals she had written of her outlook on life after suffering the loss of her 2 sons... describing her thoughts in this matter.. by comparing her life to how birds react after a severe storm.
She wrote of how a terrible storm had caused birds to lose their nests in the trees, lost newborns, and even eggs within the nests for upcoming births. Yet, after the horrendous storm had passed and the winds had calmed and it was quiet in the aftermath...these very birds...began to sing once more.
May our Thanksgiving Prayers...come from our hearts...hearts that desire to please and trust...in Him!
No comments:
Post a Comment