Wednesday, 24 November 2010

• Thank You Lord - In Advance

  The following passage from Colossians that God has given me today may not be your ordinary choice to emphasize thanksgiving, but God has shown me something special in this that I would love to share.   We are exhorted to give thanks to God for all His blessings to us; and when we think about it, we have to admit to having received much from Him - not the least of these things is our life, our eternal life.   Did I say ETERNAL LIFE?

  What God has impressed on me to say is that we ought to let that Life speak to us all of the time.  Our hearts need to be changed.  The Holy Spirit did not come to dwell in us so that we would have miraculous powers or that we would have deep spiritual knowledge above all our brethren.   The powers and the knowledge are God's.  We don't own them or have franchise rights to them, and most especially they are not ours to show our glory.   What a shame, though, if by having the Holy Spirit dwelling in us, we are not changed in our outlook and attitudes.   So when Thanksgiving Day rolls around (and it's one of my favorites) we should be so practiced up on giving thanks that this day with its special emphasis on taking time to acknowledge God's goodness, would be in line with our normal outlook.

  The world is moaning and lamenting the "poor economy" and grudgingly admitting that things could be worse, but we can be those lights that give them a  glimpse of the glories of God and His creation...the joy of being His and knowing Him.  Let's start with that. 

  Father, By Your Holy Spirit, be pleased to reveal to us the beauty that You have made inside us so that we would allow our praise coming forth by Him to truly bless those who seldom give You thanks.  Thank You, Thank You!!

  Colossians 3:12-16:

  "Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.  Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God."

  The following is adapted from my daily devotional and not all of my own words:

  Which comes first - the gift, or the spirit of thanksgiving? Common wisdom says that we get the gift first, then we say thank you for receiving it. While that is true, some gifts will never be recognized or received without a spirit of thanksgiving.

  How many people sabotage the blessings in their life because of a crummy attitude? They are dissatisfied and disappointed - and let the world know it - despite a plethora of gifts from God and others all around them.

  All of us can be thankful for the many things God has done for us. But there may be deeper levels of spirituality - even more of His nature and goodness - that we can experience through the attitude of gratitude. Have you said thank you to God today?  (Or better yet, are you an instrument of praise?)  Choose your song, your favorite instrument, but let the praise be to our wonderful God!

  • 10:29 AM
  • 55 Views
  • 8 eProps
  • 9 Comments