Thankful for His Peace

“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give you.
I do not give to you as the world gives.”
John 14:27

Peace--the most sought after gift--is not a state of mind with a lack of turmoil. But it is a reaction to the issues in our daily lives placed in our path by the world. While we desire a life free from stress, we know we can’t have it because of the sin in the world.

At present our nation and the world face the possibility of an economic crisis unknown to anyone born after 1940. The newscasters keep us informed of the latest moves by our nation’s leaders. This feature of our society could be a good thing and a bad thing.

Peace of mind keeps a believer going in spite of what one hears or reads. Some choose to fret about this economic precipice we find ourselves on. They endanger their health and well-being worrying about all of this. Others quietly make decisions to try to meet their current and future needs.

Having the peace of God helps the quiet planners as they search for ways to weather the storms.

While peace is a gift from God, it also can be a choice.

Thankful for His Word

“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and
a light unto my path.” (Ps. 119:105)

God’s word comforts us, trains us in holiness, and rebukes us when we are wrong. His inspired word builds us up. (2 Timothy 3:16)

The Bible, God’s Holy guides us through times of uncertainty and calms our hearts when we experience anxiety.

As we mature in Christ, we-God’s children, learn to fully appreciate having His word direct us. When we read the scriptures we hear God speak to our hearts.

Some people don’t understand that the Bible is God’s inspired word. Yes, Moses, David, Solomon, the various prophets, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and Peter--to name a few--wrote the books included in the Bible. But God himself, through the Holy Spirit inspired and guided these writers.

Let’s give thanks for God’s Holy Word.

Thankful for Our Salvation

God created Adam and Eve, placing them in Paradise. They chose to go against His direction. He expelled them from the perfect Eden.

God wanted His children safe from sin. He desired to protect them from the evil one. The Creator used prophets to present His message to his creation. But the people refused to listen.

He enacted a plan--send His Son to earth, use Jesus to save us from our sins. Christ willingly went to the cross to provide a way for us to receive forgiveness for all our evil, worldly ways.

Without Calvary, we would be lost forever. Let’s remember to thank God for our salvation.

Thankful for the Promise of Eternal Life

Thankful for the Promise of Eternal Life

(Rev. 21:3-5)

As God’s children we know we will live with Jesus in Heaven when our days on earth are over. Think of it. We will see Him and dwell with Him. We get to spend part of our time at His feet and listen to stories. (John 14:3) We will also get to spend time doing works we have done down here on earth.

One great thing we know about Heaven is there will be no sadness, no crying, no anxiety, no depression and no illness. Any physical anomalies we have here on earth will be removed from our bodies. Our physical beings will be perfect.

When we advance beyond the gates of heaven we will have no more stress in our lives. We will not have people or things getting on our last nerve. No one can push our buttons. We will not experience panic attacks.

Diseases will no longer enter into our lives. Just think--no more Cancer, no more Kidney Disease, and no Diabetes. Because these illnesses won’t be there, their treatments or controlling procedures will not be needed, either.

For now, we have the promise of eternal life. While we are here on this earth, we are learning about how we are to handle things and model Christ in our daily lives. God has given us this promise. As we focus on what we have to be thankful for, let’s remember this one because it's so special.

Thankful for Prayer

Hebrews 4:15-16

When we need a listening ear, we have someone to talk to who understands our concern. He is accessible to us anytime, day or night. We call Him God. He wants us to feel free to step into his throne room and discuss what’s on our hearts.

We can tell God anything, even things we consider too personal to share with our closest earthly friend. We can share with Him how we really feel about the circumstances surrounding our jobs, our homes, and our families.

At present, in our nation, we see and hear of businesses having to cut back expenses. Others are facing having to close their doors. Government entities are not immune to these issues. A common factor in all these decisions is the effect on the employees and their families. Children have to be fed and clothed. The mortgages will still need to be met. Utilities bills will have to be paid. But, the most important thing we can do for those who are caught in this plight is pray. Sometime prayer is the only thing we can do.

Jesus-our High Priest, presents requests to the Father on our behalf. We as Christian brothers and sisters model His behavior by doing the same with petitions and needs of others we hold dear.

Thank you, Lord for listening to us, Your children, when we pray. You are never too busy for us. You always act in our best interest. We thank you for your watch care over us. AMEN

Being Thankful for the Small Things

As we progress through life, we experience a lot of events that shape who we are. We graduate from high school. We might attend college. We may graduate from college. We relocate to another city. We choose to follow Jesus Christ. We marry. We start a family. We purchase a home. We are separated from loved ones due to job relocation. We lose a family member or a friend to death. We grieve, we endure intent sadness.

In all of these life events, we have either joy or sadness. Also, all these times teach us something about life and ultimately about ourselves. During the first Gulf war, some friends of ours had their son and their youngest daughter in Saudi Arabia. The mother experienced depression. The father had to keep his small business running, but he later admitted to having a hard time dealing with two of their children, especially their daughter, involved in the war.

The parents and the daughter learned some things through their separation; God showed the mother and father how much their family means to them. When the daughter returned home, the one thing she couldn’t get over was having a commode that flushed. The daughter later turned her life around and is a strong witness for God.

We live in a small older house. I feel drafts around the window in the living room. The furnace doesn’t keep it as warm as I would like. The basement stairs could be a cause for concern but I have always been careful on them. But, when I hear of people in Galveston Texas living in tents after Hurricane Ike, I believe I can thank God for keeping us safe and dry in our home.

Yesterday, at church we saw pictures of a church parsonage in Galveston that looked horrific. The exterior of the church and the parsonage look pretty good. The crux of the damage is the inside of the buildings. The surge from the gulf caused the damageintense waves of water breaking through the windows, filling the houses, bringing in mud etc, and then backing out of the structures. The surge left behind mud, alien objects from their usual habitats, and some cadavers. The church took up a collection for the Galveston congregation.

When I was in third grade, my teacher told us Thanksgiving was about giving thanks for what God has given us. It wasn’t about having turkey. We were to give thanks even if all we had was peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

Tradition tells us the Pilgrims had an average of five kernels of corn (per day) during their first winter here. At onetime, our former church had as its Thanksgiving eve service a time of each person holding a candle stick and five pieces of corn and telling five things they were thankful for.

As we go through our seasonal routine in preparing for Thanksgiving, let’s take some time and think about the many things God has done in our lives and tell Him “Thank You.”

“Thank You”

It’s such a small phrase. Yet, it carries a great message. Parents take great pains to teach their children to say it at appropriate times. People who hear these words addressed to them feel honored.

As citizens of our land, we take the time to convey our feelings to veterans for defending our freedom. We do this because of our gratitude.

We want to show one another our appreciation of their work on a project or an activity. We begin by saying, “Thank you.” Sometimes we say it with a card or a note to the one who has done so much.

The American public expects to hear people say “Thank You” when they patronize businesses. We recently heard both men who ran for President of the United States thank people for their support and for their votes. When people hold open a door for someone, we hear the words expressing appreciation for extending the kindness. We are seeing a return to courtesy.

We sing a praise chorus, “Thank you, God, for saving my soul/ Thank you, God, for making me whole. . . .” He loves to hear it. He loves to know we appreciate being His.

God desires to hear us say “Thank you” to Him. He deserves our thanks. Our prayers should contain thoughts of our gratitude for all He does for us. Without His many great works and unmerited love for us, we would be nothing.

When my husband and I were on vacation in Florida this past spring, I discovered on our first day there I had left my identification at a gas station in Alabama the day before. We found a way for me to get an identification card so I could cash my traveler’s checks. On our way back home we stopped at the same gas station. I went in and told her my story. She asked me my name. I told her. She reached to the back of the counter and handed me my driver’s license and my insurance card. I said “Thank you about six times. three to her and three to God.