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.

Day thirty-one in the devotional is the outline of a Thanksgiving sermon I shared in 2019 titled, “How To Give THANKS”.  I’ll finish out this series of posts with a week focused on the points from that sermon.  Here is point five with a reminder that living with a heart of thanksgiving should lead us to a greater practice of kindness.

How To Give THANKS:
Give Kindness

“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.“
Ephesians 4:31-32 (NIV)

This version of “How To Give THANKS” is based around a “made-for-the-movies” stereotypical family thanksgiving day.  Here is one of the six things I think we can learn about giving thanks from a traditional Thanksgiving Day gathering:

We give thanks to God, and to others, when we give:

• Kindness: Ephesians 4:31-32 — What family gathering is complete without that cousin that’s . . . well, he’s just different.  Regardless of his different looks, different political views, different lifestyle, different pie preference, or different whatever, he is part of the family so we give Kindness.  Extending kindness doesn’t mean that we agree or approve of everything about him — we may pray and work desperately to influence positive change in his life.  It does mean, however, that we acknowledge his value as a person and do our best to include him in the family celebration of the Thanksgiving Day gathering.  We all sin and find our self in need of God’s greatest kindness — the undeserved gift of forgiveness and salvation through the blood of His Son, Jesus!  It is this example that we must follow when we give thanks with kindness.

As we prepare to wrap up a month pursuing a “Heart of Thanksgiving”, I pray that each of us would continually be reminded of all that we are thankful for.  As you pray, ask God to help you live a life of thanksgiving every day.  Pray that your representation of Jesus would show a thankful heart to the people around you.  And thank you for your love, prayers, and encouragement.

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.

Day thirty-one in the devotional is the outline of a Thanksgiving sermon I shared in 2019 titled, “How To Give THANKS”.  I’ll finish out this series of posts with a week focused on the points from that sermon.  Here is point four with a reminder that living with a heart of thanksgiving should lead us to both rest and give others permission to rest.

How To Give THANKS:
Give Naps

“Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.“
1 John 3:18-20 (NIV)

This version of “How To Give THANKS” is based around a “made-for-the-movies” stereotypical family thanksgiving day.  Here is one of the six things I think we can learn about giving thanks from a traditional Thanksgiving Day gathering:

We give thanks to God, and to others, when we give:

• Naps: 1 John 3:18-20 — Ahhh . . . turkey, plenty of good humor, an abundance of food . . . I’m tired.  What good Thanksgiving Day gathering would be complete without a Nap?  We give thanks when we give Naps!  When we allow a person to relax and rest we communicate that we value both them and their time.  If every interaction with a person has you walking away knowing that they expect something from you it is not likely that you will feel a true appreciation regardless of any words of thanks.  Resting is a God-given concept and gift that we typically don’t use enough ourself and seldom think to give to others.  The sabbath concept, a day of rest, is connected by God to the fact that on the seventh day He rested from His work of creation.  We, and those around us, are more tolerable when we give thanks with naps.

As we prepare to wrap up a month pursuing a “Heart of Thanksgiving”, I pray that each of us would continually be reminded of all that we are thankful for.  As you pray, ask God to help you live a life of thanksgiving every day.  Pray that your representation of Jesus would show a thankful heart to the people around you.  And thank you for your love, prayers, and encouragement.

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.

Day thirty-one in the devotional is the outline of a Thanksgiving sermon I shared in 2019 titled, “How To Give THANKS”.  I’ll finish out this series of posts with a week focused on the points from that sermon.  Here is point three with a reminder that living with a heart of thanksgiving should lead us to give abundantly.

How To Give THANKS:
Give Abundance

“Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.”
2 Peter 1:2 (NIV)

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
John 10:10 (NIV)

This version of “How To Give THANKS” is based around a “made-for-the-movies” stereotypical family thanksgiving day.  Here is one of the six things I think we can learn about giving thanks from a traditional Thanksgiving Day gathering:

We give thanks to God, and to others, when we give:

• Abundance: 2 Peter 1:2, John 10:10 — Does anything symbolize the American Thanksgiving Day gathering any more than a table overflowing with every variety of food imaginable — a table of Abundance?  Jesus said He came to not only give us life, but to give us life abundantly!  Do you give thanks with abundance, or just enough to get by?  When we want to celebrate or to remember great things, we would likely never ask how little can I do and still look good.  No, we would examine our resources of every kind to determine how abundantly can I celebrate to make my joy known to all.  When we want to express deep-felt thankfulness it ought to be the same way — not what do I have to do but how much can I do.  Your generosity overflows when you give thanks with abundance.

As we prepare to wrap up a month pursuing a “Heart of Thanksgiving”, I pray that each of us would continually be reminded of all that we are thankful for.  As you pray, ask God to help you live a life of thanksgiving every day.  Pray that your representation of Jesus would show a thankful heart to the people around you.  And thank you for your love, prayers, and encouragement.

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.

Day thirty-one in the devotional is the outline of a Thanksgiving sermon I shared in 2019 titled, “How To Give THANKS”.  I’ll finish out this series of posts with a week focused on the points from that sermon.  Here is point two with a reminder that living with a heart of thanksgiving should lead us to give humor.

How To Give THANKS:
Give Humor

“Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, ‘The LORD has done great things for them.’  The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.”
Psalm 126:2-3 (NIV)

This version of “How To Give THANKS” is based around a “made-for-the-movies” stereotypical family thanksgiving day.  Here is one of the six things I think we can learn about giving thanks from a traditional Thanksgiving Day gathering:

We give thanks to God, and to others, when we give:

• Humor:  Psalm 126:2-3 –Without a good sense of humor, Thanksgiving and other family gatherings can fall apart quite quickly.  We give thanks when we don’t take our self too seriously.  God says that a cheerful, or merry, heart is good medicine!  I believe that there are boundaries that need to be kept when it comes to humor but laughter is not only good for the spirit, it is good for the body.  This is not only true of an individual but it applies to a family, or a church family, as well.  Don’t take every situation more seriously than it ought to be taken. True joy can shine through brightly when you give thanks with humor.

As we prepare to wrap up a month pursuing a “Heart of Thanksgiving”, I pray that each of us would continually be reminded of all that we are thankful for.  As you pray, ask God to help you live a life of thanksgiving every day.  Pray that your representation of Jesus would show a thankful heart to the people around you.  And thank you for your love, prayers, and encouragement.

In prayer,

Tom