Thanksgiving.  What is the first thing that comes to mind when you read or hear that word?  Is it a day, a family meal, or perhaps a specific menu of foods?  Is it an attitude that comes and goes based on how you feel?  Or is it a way of life which flows from you regardless of your circumstances?  These devotions I will be sharing this month were originally written throughout November 2019 and then edited/updated during the summer of 2020 for a 31 day devotional journal, “The Heart of Thanksgiving:  Living a Life of Thankfulness”.  I will be re-sharing them here this month to encourage each of us to pursue a greater spirit of thankfulness in all we do.

Here is day twenty with an important reminder that living with a heart of thanksgiving should cause us to be thankful that God is our refuge and ever-present help in time of need.

Day Twenty:
Thankful For a Refuge

“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.  Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.”
Psalm 46:1-3 (NIV)

Today I am thankful for a God who is my refuge and strength.  When I read from the book of James, “Is any one of you in trouble?  He should pray.”, the above passage from Psalms always comes to my mind.  I’m pretty good at finding myself in trouble, often of my own doing, and I would guess I’m not alone in that.  Prayer is an incredible privilege of joining in conversation with God in such a way that fear begins to melt away.  When it feels like my feet have been knocked out from under me and it is impossible to stand, God is still there as a foundation to stand upon.  When everything familiar has disappeared and the landmarks of life have vanished, God is still standing strong in His love as He beckons me to come home.  When the waters of life are tossing me to and fro, God lifts my head above the waters and holds me to Himself.  And when the things I thought were solid begin to shake and crumble, God stands firm as the rock of my salvation.

As I reflect back on so many conversations from the missions conference, nearly all of the stories shared with me of God working through the prayers offered in faith began the same way.  They began with both a need and a series of attempts by people to resolve that need in their own strength.  While it would be great if we would learn to go to God first in our time of need, as the stories unfolded it appeared that we often need to reach a point of desperation before we turn to God.  I am thankful that God waits patiently, even as He longs for us to turn to Him much earlier in the process.  Even when prayer is used as our last resort after trying everything else, God is still faithful in hearing us and being the ever-present help in our time of need.  I am thankful that God’s faithfulness leads me to growth as I continually learn to trust Him earlier in the process and admit much more readily that I can’t do it and I need Him.

As you pray, thank God for being your refuge in times of trouble.  Pray that you would grow in your practice of turning to Him in all circumstances.  Pray that you would help others know God as their refuge.

I pray that you and I would know God as our refuge and strength in times of trouble . . . and in times that we’re unaware of trouble.  I pray that we would allow God to use our repeated attempts to do life on our own to teach us just how much we need Him in everything.  I pray that we would continually learn to call out to God as our first course of action rather than waiting until we’ve exhausted ourselves in trying to do life on our own.

In prayer,

Tom  

Thanksgiving.  What is the first thing that comes to mind when you read or hear that word?  Is it a day, a family meal, or perhaps a specific menu of foods?  Is it an attitude that comes and goes based on how you feel?  Or is it a way of life which flows from you regardless of your circumstances?  These devotions I will be sharing this month were originally written throughout November 2019 and then edited/updated during the summer of 2020 for a 31 day devotional journal, “The Heart of Thanksgiving:  Living a Life of Thankfulness”.  I will be re-sharing them here this month to encourage each of us to pursue a greater spirit of thankfulness in all we do.

Here is day nineteen with an important reminder that living with a heart of thanksgiving should cause us to be thankful that God reigns over all the earth.

Day Nineteen:
Thankful That God Reigns

“The LORD reigns, let the earth be glad;
let the distant shores rejoice.”
Psalm 97:1 (NIV)

Today I am thankful for a God who reigns with an intent to bring gladness to mankind.  It is comforting to know that God’s rule is from everlasting to everlasting regardless of who may think they happen to be the real authority.  I am thankful for a God who reigns with mercy, grace, and love.  Yes, there will be a day of final judgment; but now is a time when “the Lord is patient, not willing that any should perish but that all would come to repentance.”  I am thankful for the Lord’s patience as He reigns and I am thankful that He gives cause for all peoples to rejoice,

It seems that with each passing year our culture becomes more and more angry.  I believe one of the reasons for this is that we think we are in charge and tend to become very upset when we don’t get our way.  Our society, and even the Christian culture in America, has succumbed to mob rule — whoever gathers the greatest number of people, and becomes the loudest in their demands, gets to have their way in everything.  We are a nation of spoiled children who have learned that holding our breath, throwing a tantrum, and/or screaming bloody murder will eventually wear mom or dad down to the point that they will give us whatever we want.  In fact, our culture reminds me a lot of the scene on Mount Carmel where the prophets of Baal thought that their theatrics would somehow get the attention of their god.  When it didn’t work, they became louder and more bizarre in their actions in a vain attempt to prove their superiority to Elijah and his God.

I am thankful that I can go to a God who reigns and I can boldly lay out everything that is within me with a confidence He will work in ways that brings gladness and rejoicing.  I am thankful that “the prayers of the righteous are powerful and effective.”  I am thankful that I have a relationship with the One who has all authority and power — even over those who think they are in charge.

I pray that you and I would believe in the One who reigns with such conviction that He is the one we go to when seeking justice, help, and understanding.  I pray that we would always look to God and His Word as the authority we are most accountable to.  I pray that we would truly believe, and pray as if, there is nothing more powerful in bringing about right and needed changes than praying to the One who reigns over all.  I pray that God reigning in and over our lives would result not just in gladness and joy for us, but in rejoicing by all who get to see God in us.  And I pray that we would not give in to the temptation to join the “mob of the day” in an attempt to get what we want.

In prayer,

Tom  

Thanksgiving.  What is the first thing that comes to mind when you read or hear that word?  Is it a day, a family meal, or perhaps a specific menu of foods?  Is it an attitude that comes and goes based on how you feel?  Or is it a way of life which flows from you regardless of your circumstances?  These devotions I will be sharing this month were originally written throughout November 2019 and then edited/updated during the summer of 2020 for a 31 day devotional journal, “The Heart of Thanksgiving:  Living a Life of Thankfulness”.  I will be re-sharing them here this month to encourage each of us to pursue a greater spirit of thankfulness in all we do.

Here is day eighteen with an important reminder that living with a heart of thanksgiving should cause us to be thankful for the work God has created in advance for us to do.

Day Eighteen:
Thankful For Work

“As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work.”
John 9 4 (NIV)

As I get back into the routine of a “normal” week, I am thankful for the work God has given me that brings glory to Him.  Yesterday was kind of a dreary day — it was a long day of driving with all of it under an overcast sky and most of it in rainy conditions.  Definitely not weather that tends to uplift my spirit, so I was thankful to find several encouraging messages when I got home from people who wanted to thank me for sharing prayer-based resources at ICOM.  The recurring theme in each of them was to praise God for His work in the midst of our conversations and interaction.  That is the part I found most encouraging because it served to remind me who I am working for and who will complete the work He began in me.

I find it interesting that the above verse comes in the middle of the response given by Jesus to the disciples who were asking about the cause of a man born blind.  Jesus made it clear that the blindness was not a result of sin by this man or his parents, but rather an opportunity for the glory of God to be displayed.  It also seems clear to me that the opportunity to do the work of God is not something that should be put off as not only could it be a time-sensitive opportunity, but if we don’t do the work now there may not be a tomorrow to do it in.

As I pray this week about purpose, I am thankful for a God who gives purpose to the work I do.  I am thankful that He doesn’t limit the type of work that has purpose to specific “noble” callings, but gives purpose and value to all work that is done in a faithfulness to Him that brings Him glory.  I am thankful for reminders of the good work He does through people like you and I.  I am thankful for the good work of people who make it possible for me to share at conferences.  Their work has as much purpose and value as mine — perhaps even more.

What is the work you do?  Is it easy for you to see it as work done for God?  Why?  Would a growing attitude of thankfulness for the work set before you change how you view that work?  Why?

As you pray, thank God for the work you are able to do.  Pray that you would approach all of the work you do as work being done for Him.

I pray that you and I would grow in both our thankfulness and our awareness of the opportunities to do the work of God.  I pray that we would do good works for the purpose of bringing glory to our Father in heaven.  I pray that we would make the most of every opportunity as we live with an awareness that those opportunities may cease to exist at any time.

In prayer,

Tom  

Thanksgiving.  What is the first thing that comes to mind when you read or hear that word?  Is it a day, a family meal, or perhaps a specific menu of foods?  Is it an attitude that comes and goes based on how you feel?  Or is it a way of life which flows from you regardless of your circumstances?  These devotions I will be sharing this month were originally written throughout November 2019 and then edited/updated during the summer of 2020 for a 31 day devotional journal, “The Heart of Thanksgiving:  Living a Life of Thankfulness”.  I will be re-sharing them here this month to encourage each of us to pursue a greater spirit of thankfulness in all we do.

Here is day seventeen with an important reminder that living with a heart of thanksgiving should cause us to be thankful for the nations of the world.

Day Seventeen:
Thankful For the Nations

“Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy.  How awesome is the LORD Most High, the great King over all the earth!”
Psalm 47:1-2 (NIV)

Today I am thankful for a glimpse of the nations praising God.  As I finish up some time at the International Conference on Missions, it has been a fun few days worshiping God together and talking with people from all around the world.  I am thankful for those who have responded to God’s calling to take the good news of Jesus to the far off lands and to the nearby neighborhoods.  I am thankful to be given a small part in encouraging and equipping others through the prayer ministry.

As has become a typical experience for me at these conventions, I once again had a number of the convention center workers ask if it was okay for them to take some of the prayer-based devotional books that I was giving away.  I am thankful God has given me eyes that often notice the forgotten people.  I often pray that God would make me even more observant so that I would see each person I encounter as a person.  I am thankful that God has given me something to share that can help encourage people who want to seek after God’s heart.

While there are those ministries that seem to be highlighted every year at the conference, I am thankful for the many who faithfully do the work God has called them to while receiving little to no recognition.  They do it because of God’s faithfulness to them and in obedience to His calling.  I am thankful for young people I talked with who want to live with an awareness of God’s presence in whatever career path they may follow.  I am thankful for the great diversity in God’s gifting to people so that His light and love can be spread into the diverse areas of darkness in this world.

How diverse is the group of people you spend the most time with?  Are there people in your daily life which seem to be invisible to most of the world?  Why?  Are there people that you see, but don’t really see?  What does it take for you to feel included in a group?  Do you do those things to help people different from you feel included in the groups you are part of?  Why?

As you pray, ask God to help you be thankful for the peoples of the world.  Pray that you would be deliberate in accepting and interacting with people who are different from you.  Pray that those who look, sound, and act differently would know of your thankfulness for them.

I pray that you and I would daily realize we are not alone when we praise and worship God.  I pray that we would live with open eyes and obedient minds as we walk faithfully with our Lord.

In prayer,

Tom