When we say the word thanksgiving most of us in America think of a day set aside to enjoy family and eat a big meal. In the south, this meal will usually consist of foods that bring comforting memories. Some dishes we serve are only made at thanksgiving or possibly Christmas. They are special dishes that require more time than the normal routine dinner. In some families, they will gather, but not be very thankful. They may sit beside someone they are not particularly fond of, so they endure the meal. Other families will gather and spend joyous hours preparing and devouring the meal. We all have some kind of traditions, and we indulge in these together. However, if we want to truly have a day of thanksgiving, I believe there must be a pathway to get there that culminates in true heart worship.
In Psalms 95:2, the psalmist teaches us that we must come into His presence. In Hebrew, it means coming before Him face to face. We are not to just say a pray, but to seek Him, to draw close to Him. It should be a joyous time, so much so that our heart leaps into songs of praise. Psalm 95:2 shows us the reaction of a truly thankful person.
Psalm 95:2 “Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!”
The Psalmist teaches us in Psalm 50:23 that the one who offers thanksgiving honors God. It is the ultimate of true worship. It is not just bending the knee and going through the motions. It is from the heart, and it is praise that is acceptable to God.
Psalm 50:23 “The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me; to one who orders his way rightly I will show the salvation of God!”
I Thessalonians 5:16 gives us a path to get to this exuberant thanksgiving. We must rejoice always. Circumstances should not dictate our praise and thanksgiving to God. He has not only given us physical life here on earth, but He has promised to those who repent and place their faith in Him eternal life that is perfect. No matter what your circumstances are here, it could be worse, and your circumstances are not permanent, however, eternity is! Look around you and thank Him for everything. Paul repeats this same command in Philippians 4:4 “Rejoice in the Lord always: and again, I say, Rejoice.” In Him, our joy is complete, because deep within our souls there will be a joy that is based on what He has done for us.
Then in I Thessalonians 5:17, we are to “pray without ceasing.” This will be the fuel to continue rejoicing. This is not staying on our knees 24/7, but having a mind that is fixed on Him. It is feeling His presence in us wherever we go and whatever the task we know He is there. If you want this kind of mindset, you must spend time with Him.
The next verse is I Thessalonians 5:18 “In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” We must understand that God is a sovereign God. Things happen that we don’t understand, but we are to trust God in the midst of them. We know that God will work things out for our good according to Romans 8:28, and verse 29 teaches us what is truly good. God in His infinite love and wisdom is seeking to make us like Jesus! He is our model. We are to emulate Him. We are to want to be like the one who made it possible to spend eternity in Heaven instead of Hell. With each trial or pleasure, we are to use it to honor and glorify the Father. The reason we have such a hard time being thankful is that we look at ourselves and others and we want to live in the moment without any complications. We are short sited and selfish creatures when we forget how blessed we are by the bounty that God bestows on us. Because of the gift of His Son, we are obligated to be thankful. We should never grumble and complain because of our circumstances. Usually, they are the consequences of our own doing. We should have a heart that sees the big picture and that should cause us to have perpetual thanksgiving. Don’t allow your sinful nature to rob you of the joy that is the reward of a thankful heart. Get on the pathway to thanksgiving and don’t get off.
