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Like every Thanksgiving season, we try to live in the consciousness of what we’re grateful to God for. We all have our lists. Some families will go around the table this Thursday mentioning those blessings. Most will say family, health and friends. Some will have gone thru a recent loss and be grateful for what they once had. Holidays are joyful, but sometimes tearful. I’ve wondered why we’re grateful at Thanksgiving. I know we’re supposed to be…it’s on the calendar. And even though it’s expected, I think most folks have genuine appreciation. But what does it require to be or become GRATEFUL? Are some people “just that way”, always thankful, while others struggle with entitlement or a resentment of circumstances? I don’t really know. I think it takes faith, slowing down, some inventory time, reflecting, sharing & listening. And it takes a HUMBLE spirit giving credit to God for the good things HE has done, rather than what WE have accomplished on our own. So which comes first, a humble heart or a grateful heart? Hard to tell. Like the chicken and the egg thing. But I do know where one is, the other is close by. A humble heart and a grateful heart usually have the same “mailing address”. And is there a correlation between being GRATEFUL and being HOPEFUL? I believe so. Every hopeful person I know is grateful. And most ungrateful folks don’t seem hopeful in their outlook. This Thanksgiving week I hope we can grow our GRATEFUL heart into a HOPEFUL heart. We might have to rethink, restructure or rebuild, but I believe this is the week to do it! Thru the years I’ve tried to put my prayers in those 2 categories….. “Lord, here’s what I’m grateful for”….. and “Lord, here’s what I’m hopeful for”…… The first is a prayer of thanks & the next a respectful request in faith. So, let’s start one day at a time being grateful with a daily focus you can expand and build upon….here we go…. MONDAY…..Grateful for the WORD of God I’M GRATEFUL…. That God didn’t leave us alone with only the general revelation of nature (Romans 1:20). That He “moved men by His Spirit” in the WRITING of Scripture (2 Peter 1:21). That His Word is INSPIRED & PRACTICAL for our training and spiritual growth (2 Timothy 3:16-17). That His Word will ILLUMINATE our lives giving direction as David said, “a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path” (Psalm 119:105). In 1 John 5:13, it says, “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life”. God wants us to have ASSURANCE and feel secure in our salvation! And if we “DELIGHT” in His Word, we’ll be like trees planted by streams of water which yield fruit in season and it’s leaves don’t wither”. (from Psalm 1:1-3) I’M HOPEFUL…. That God will help us cultivate the SOIL OF OUR HEARTS as in Matthew 13 and the Parable of the Sower, so we might receive it gratefully and fruitfully. And as the Church, may we realize there is a FAMINE, not of bread or thirst, but for “hearing the words of the Lord” as mentioned in Amos 8:1-12 and SPEAK the Word of God in a Godless culture. May we speak openly of the GOSPEL…both the bad news of Romans 3:23, that “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” and the good news of Romans 6:23, that while “the wages of sin is death, the gift of God is eternal life thru Jesus Christ our Lord.” And I’M PRAYERFUL…… Take a moment & mention your GRATITUDE to God for His Word. Tell Him you’re sorry you haven’t paid as much attention as you wish you would’ve…. I do that a lot too…. And take a moment to pray a prayer of what you’re HOPEFUL for….the list of those we intercede for as well as a hopeful prayer of how God might EMPOWER us to bring His Word to our culture in a loving & compelling way. Praying it’s a blessed Monday….at least as much as a Monday can be blessed…..and see you tomorrow for some more Manna…. Love you all, Finishing Well Friends….. And if you need a song fit for today from the spiritual past like I usually do….here goes ….THY WORD…..AMY GRANT TUESDAY…Grateful for the SON of God Praying it was a blessed day yesterday. Getting closer to Thursday, the beginning of all the holiday season! A lot of plans I’m sure we all have to pull together. We move from being grateful for the Word of God yesterday to our gratitude for God sending HIS SON! May we begin this day of “busyness”, being not too busy to give thanks for the One who paid our debt in FULL on an Old Rugged Cross! I’M GRATEFUL…. That “when the FULLNESS OF TIME CAME, God sent His Son, born of a woman, under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons and daughters.” (Galatians 4:4) That He LEFT IT ALL,….“not grasping on to equality with God, but emptying Himself, taking on the form of a servant, in the likeness of a man, humbling Himself to the point of death on a cross”. (Philippians 2:6-8) That He ENDURED IT ALL,….“for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God”. (Hebrews 12:2b) That He came not to be served, but to serve and to give His life as a RANSOM for many.” (Mark 10:45) That Jesus “appeared for this purpose, to DESTROY the works of the devil.” (1 John 3:8) That He “STANDS at the door of our heart and KNOCKS”…(even when we have pushed Him out as the people of Laodicea had) and if anyone hears His voice and opens the door, He comes to dine with us and us with Him (Revelation 3:20) That He simply & dramatically REINSTATES us after we’ve fallen as He did with Peter, giving us the opportunity to reaffirm our love for Him, then be directed to “FEED HIS SHEEP!” (John 21:15-17) And I’M HOPEFUL….. That we might adequately “LIFT HIM UP so that He might draw all men unto Himself” (John 12:32) That we might BE THE SALT of the earth & THE LIGHT of the world, not losing our “candle power” or “saltiness”, so the world might “see and long” for the Savior & reach out and find Him since He is not far away!” (Matthew 5:13-16 / Acts 17:27) That we might fulfill His prayer, when He prayed to His Father that His followers MIGHT BE ONE (John 17:20-21). May we become the DIVERSE yet UNIFIED people of God who name His Son with one loud voice as the ONLY hope of heaven. And I’M PRAYERFUL….. And that we might “make room in our heart” for Him this holiday season like never before! Fernando Ortega sings this old spiritual so well. May it be the cry of our grateful heart this day in our Thanksgiving week! GIVE ME JESUS….FERNANDO ORTEGA WEDNESDAY….Grateful for the SPIRIT of God Hump day of the week! And it’s Thanksgiving Eve! A lot to get done I’m sure today! May it get done in a timely & joyful manner. And may the Lord interrupt us if & however He chooses to! I’M GRATEFUL….. That when Jesus left to go back to Heaven, He chose not to leave us alone. He left the “COMFORTER” … the Holy Spirit to come alongside us on every occasion. That the Holy Spirit would “CONVICT the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment” (John 16:8). And He would GUIDE US into all truth, & not speak on His own, but rather DISCLOSE to the disciples what is to come.” (verses 9-14) I’m grateful the Spirit of the Lord doesn’t just “HOVER FROM A DISTANCE” as we see in Genesis before the creation of the world…..nor does He occasionally “COME UPON US” as He did in the days of the Old Testament heroes….. But rather, He “DWELLS WITHIN” the heart of every believer (Acts 2:38). And I’M HOPEFUL….. That we can KEEP IN STEP with the Holy Spirit as Paul encouraged us to in Galatians 5, when he exhorted us to “be led by the Spirit and not fulfill the desires of the flesh. What does that look like? A life that’s loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle and filled with SELF-CONTROL (there’s a reason God put “self-control” last!). And I’m hopeful we don’t become insensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit & begin to QUENCH or GRIEVE Him. Those two warnings are found in 1 Thessalonians 5:19 and Ephesians 4 :30. Not “quenching” the Spirit indicates we shouldn’t resist His prompting to keep following Him passionately. And the not “grieving” the Spirit warning seems in the context of a “relationship”. Just as our heart is grieved when we are disrespected or discounted in a relationship, so it is in our walk with the Holy Spirit. Our hope is that we not become casual or “flippant” in our interacting with God’s Spirit, but rather honoring, respectful, and willing to trust and obey His promptings! I’M PRAYERFUL…… Our prayer might be today, that we become more “sensitive” to the leading of God’s Spirit this Thanksgiving. That we allow Him to make our hearts receptive to what He’s leading us to say or do that’s out of the ordinary & even “out of character” for us! So thank you for picking up the morning manna this Thanksgiving week. The big corporate “thank you” is tomorrow! And please let me just “light the campfire” and pretend we’re swatting the mosquitos off each other’s back….we all smell like the pest control substance “OFF”, and recall this song without the music (only the lyrics) from years ago….. Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me Melt me, mold me, fill me, use me Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me. May the Lord mold us and “remake” us a little more today….. THURSDAY….Grateful for the BLESSINGS of God It’s the big day! Parade is on TV. Football games coming on. Maybe even some of those “local rivalries” are taking place like I remember back in the day between Scottsburg and Austin as High School basketball gets kicked off. Praying the day we have set aside to formally “be thankful” is truly that….a holy day of thanks given to the God of all creation for the things He has done. I’M GRATEFUL…. for the blessings of FAMILY and FRIENDS. Let’s go with family first! Psalm 127 says, “Behold CHILDREN are a heritage from the Lord. The fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them. They shall not be ashamed but shall speak with their enemies in the gate.” Some have their quivers full….some of us are still just quivering! The Bible says that our kids are like arrows…..they can be “directed”! And godly parents can rejoice (especially in their youth when there is energy to survive)! I pray you’re grateful for your kids today. And that you can either “get with them” or at least “talk to them”. Nothing like being together or at least hearing their voice! And thank the Lord if some of you are fortunate enough to have our parents still on this earth and in your lives! The older we get the more precious those moments become. Some of you might be caught “between generations” caring for your kids or grandkids on some level and yet have one or more parents to care for at the same time. You’ll get thru this! Get some boundaries & take a nap, but don’t miss the blessing! And our FRIENDS…..thank Lord that there is a “friend that sticks closer than a brother” (Proverbs 18:24) and I believe it “implies” the same for a “sister”. Many of us honestly don’t know WHERE or WHO we’d be without the loving guidance of a godly friend. And our next “gratitude grouping” is thanks Lord, for our HEALTH and our WEALTH, whatever they appear to be today. Both of those can be fleeting at times. They might not give much notice when either of those take a hit without warning! Praise God from whom all blessings flow….even if our health & wealth might be dwindling. And I’M HOPEFUL….. That we can let our family and friends know we’re grateful for them. That we can be good stewards of the health & wealth that we have. That we can give honor and glory this Thanksgiving Day to the God “from whom all blessings flow”! And that we can hear (and sing) THE BLESSING by Kari Jobe FRIDAY…..Grateful for the PEOPLE of God (last but not least). I’M GRATEFUL….. That God leads us to other believers thru the years who make such an IMPACT on our hearts and lives! They’re mentioned in 2 Peter 1:1 as those of “like precious faith”. And for heroes who have GONE BEFORE US and lived lives of such faith that inspire those of us who remain here (the list in Hebrews 11). For the LIVING STONES we’ve been side by side with at whatever church God might have put is in thru the years. Those believers who help bring the best out in us. 1 Peter 2:5 speaks of those people God is building into His spiritual temple, which makes us all HOLY PRIESTS, who intercede for one another in prayer. And I’m grateful the SHEPHERDS & leaders in the Church who have taught us the Word of God. Small group leaders, Sunday School teachers, those who work with our kids and grandkids, and even us as kids back in the day! And I’M HOPEFUL….. That we will help one another keep our eyes on Him. That we will keep our hands to the plow. That we will allow Him to heal our hearts if they are broken from the pains of this life. That God will teach us to number our days and give us a heart of wisdom (Psalm 90). And I’m PRAYERFUL…. That this holiday season we will see God’s hand move & HIS PEOPLE speak more clearly, love more deeply, and unify more boldly than we’ve ever seen before in our lifetime! May we bridge the “gaps and the divides” that our culture has created. And may we do it with a UNITY AND HARMONY that only God can orchestrate. It is a beautiful thing when God’s people find that even if He is the only thing they have in common, then He is enough! Love you guys… And be praying for our outreach on Dec 10 at the GRAND! You can grab tickets, if you haven’t already, down below! george
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