There are many reasons to be thankful during this thanksgiving season when gathering together with loved ones and while celebrating all God’s blessings through Christ. Some are listed here. God’s word tells us that we have many things to be thankful for. God’s will for us is to rejoice, pray, and to give thanks in everything as we read in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
We must give praise of thanksgiving to the Lord always for He is good. The bible tells us that His love and mercy endure forever as stated in Psalms 136:1-3, “Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Oh, give thanks to the God of gods! For His mercy endures forever. Oh, give thanks to the Lord of lords! For His mercy endures forever.”
Praise the Lord with a new song according to His righteousness (Psalms 7:17, Psalms 95:1-3, Psalms 96:1-3, Psalms 100:1-3) and beautiful creation as stated in Psalms 8:3-5, “When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor.”
We experience the presence of God in Christ when we offer Him our thanksgiving and praise as revealed in Psalms 100:4-5, “Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him and bless His name. For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations.”
Despite all life’s struggles and turmoil, we are to continue to put our trust in the Lord for He will keep us and protect those that love Him as described in Numbers 6:24-26, “The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.”
He comes to our rescue and delivers us during our times of trouble as illustrated in Psalms 91:14-16, “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him My salvation.”
God in Christ deserves our all for what He has done for us! We must love, honor, exalt, bless, praise, and worship Him with new songs as detailed in Psalms 96:1-9, “Oh, sing to the LORD a new song! Sing to the LORD, all the earth. Sing to the LORD, bless His name; proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day. Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples. For the LORD is great and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the LORD made the heavens. Honor and majesty are before Him; strength and beauty are in His sanctuary. Give to the LORD, O families of the peoples, give to the LORD glory and strength. Give to the LORD the glory due His name; bring an offering and come into His courts. Oh, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness! Tremble before Him, all the earth.”
Rejoice always in Christ with prayer and thanksgiving and be anxious for nothing as we read in Philippians 4:4-7, “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I will say, rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Thanks be to God for He rescued us with His victory through His Son Jesus our Lord & Savior – 1 Corinthians 15:57.
Because He first loved us, forgave us, and showed us undeserving mercy; we should also love and forgive one another as stated in Colossians 3:12-17, “Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”
We must lift up our prayers and thanksgiving for one another in love since this is God’s desire in Christ that all might be saved and know Him as their Lord & Savior – 1 Timothy 2:1-4. This is God’s will for us in Christ since He will receive all the thanksgiving, honor, and praise as revealed in 2 Corinthians 4:15, “For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.”
Rejoice in knowing what the will of God in Christ is for you through His Holy Spirit as explained in Ephesians 5:17-21, “Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another in the fear of God.”
We hope that you and your family have a blessed and glorious thanksgiving season in the Lord Christ Jesus, for He is worthy to be praised! – Psalms 145:1-3. Offer up your continuous thanksgiving and praise to Him! – Hebrews 13:15-16, “Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.”
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Do you know where you will spend eternity after you die on earth? Will Jesus be your Lord and Savior or your eternal judge – John 3:15-21, Romans 2:16, 2 Timothy 4:1? Jesus reveals that He is the narrow gate to heaven where it is difficult to find and only a few will enter by it where many will enter the easy, wide and broad gate that leads to Hell and destruction – Matthew 7:13-14. Will you experience the second eternal death (spiritual death) – Revelation 2:11, Revelation 20:6, Revelation 21:8? Do you know for sure that you are written in the eternal Lamb’s Book of Life – Revelation 3:5, Revelation 20:12-15? The place called Hell is NOT a myth and is very real and the MOST awful place – Watch this Video!