“Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.” Psalm 100:4-5 (NIV)
Thankfulness…where do I begin? As I think about my life this week of Thanksgiving, I realize I am blessed beyond measure. I am blessed to have been raised in the freedom and opportunity that is America by devoted Christian parents who trained me in the ways of the Lord. I am thankful for the gift of salvation and eternal life that I received from Jesus Christ, who died on the cross for me, and that I have a personal relationship with Him allowing me to glean encouragement, peace, comfort and wisdom from the God of the universe. I am especially thankful for God’s forgiveness, grace and mercy, in light of the sinner that I am and the mistakes that I have made. And I am ever so grateful for the Bible, God’s Holy Word… that I can hold it in my hands, search through it’s pages, and soak in it’s wisdom, any time I choose, privately or openly (for now) in the public square.
On a more basic, but no less important level,
I am thankful for my wonderful husband who goes to work every day, to provide for us, week after week, year after year, in loving devotion to his family. I am thankful for my three children, who have grown up to be respectful, caring, and productive, Christ-followers…enriching our lives and bringing us more joy than they will ever know. I am thankful for the longevity of my dear sweet parents. My father lived to be 80 years old before he died of Non-Hodgkins lymphoma, and my mother is still living and is 89. I am blessed to be able to see or speak to her every day and to assist her during these often difficult senior years of life. I am so thankful for that.
I am thankful for the basic necessities of food, shelter, and clothing that we often take for granted here in bountiful America. We, as a family, have never had to: spend a night without a roof over our heads, go out into the cold without a warm coat surrounding us, walk a rocky road without shoes, or go a day without food. As I have traveled to less wealthy countries around the world riddled with poverty, I have come to appreciate these basic gifts and to see them as a special blessing.
God is so good to us and we must remember to thank Him for all of his blessings, large and small, not just on Thanksgiving, but every day of the year, because we know that everything good in our lives comes from Him.
Have a blessed and meaningful Thanksgiving!
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” James 1:17 (NIV)
“Give thanks to the Lord for he is good; his love endures forever.” Psalm 118:1 (NIV)
