Going All the Way In
It’s definitely different this year. If we are going to celebrate Thanksgiving – you know, that “family” holiday where we give thanks for what we have and those we love – it will be a creative celebration! We’re going to have to go all the way in (beliefs, emotions, values) intentionally to make it happen. As it is, society and the media usually push this time of “Giving Thanks” to the side, to get to Christmas with all of the gift buying. Family values are continually being tried and tested, instead of being the foundation that they are for life and its progress.
After the election results, the latest reports on covid19 cases, and the conditions challenging our schools and the workplace, my purpose is to suggest some specific positive thinking. Our intension to be thankful should not be connected to the immediate circumstances of our lives. It must be connected to the condition of our hearts, unseen but felt. Our mouth spews out from the abundance of the heart. My belief is that there is always something to be thankful for. The more that we recall these things, the more thanks we are able to give, always counting what is left and not what may have been lost.
Before you or I think turkey, we have to think prayer – the substance directly correlated to giving thanks. Answered and unanswered prayers tend to hold the balance of just how much we find thankfulness in our lives. Clearly, the faith to believe in the prayers we pray has nothing to do with money, status, position, location, culture, or religious backgrounds – as witnessed during this pandemic of 2020. So much so, that I considered what might be the best and worse atmosphere for heart-felt faith filled prayers.
In Matthew 21:21 (KJV), Jesus talks about mountain-moving faith to the disciples, and verse 22 says, “And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.” It is verse 13 that pulls the meaning of this statement together: “…It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer”; it is no coincidence that He did not say a house of worship, or praise, or sacrifice (all vital faith practices), but of prayer. Which means we have to think about how we pray. God actually answers all prayers, but He reserves the delivery method (timing, quantity, and avenue of arrival).
Prayers in accordance with His will and the Word are answered differently than those formulated fully on our own thoughts with conditions. An all-knowing Omnipotent God (almighty, all-powerful, invincible, unstoppable) has our best interest at hand and knows the motives of our hearts.
At this mature stage of life, I’m extremely thankful that the Lord took control over some of the prayers I prayed in my youth and early adult years! They had nothing to do with best intentions, advancing the plan of God, the goodness of others, what was really important, or dealing with the root of sin – they were just about what I think I want I feel.
The giving of thanks this year has to originate from a place within that is able to look past what “things” were before and see a peace developed from gratitude in this new day. Hopefully, you, my beautiful readers, will be able to:
- Connect with family and friends even if only remotely.
- Pool resources to create a feast, whether it’s with turkey and all of the trimmings or franks and beans.
- Share the love of family and the spirit of ancestors who bravely paved the way for us to be who we are today.
- Look around and count those blessings; there’s always something to be thankful for.
- Pray for the wellbeing of others and the advancement of peace and justice.
- Forgive those who have wrongfully hurt and abused us. (Forgiveness frees us from the torment of the accuser, allows God’s grace to heal us, and permits God to take vengeance and pass judgment over the person.)
- Discern what really matters in life – faith, hope, love – which connects to prayer, which says all things are possible!
Let’s get those Thanksgiving plans launched! Leave some comments about this blog. Share some creative things that you will do. Give some encouragement to other readers who may really have to dig deep to find the giving of thanks.
Peace & Blessings All!
