THANKSGIVING

[Margaret Wright]

THANKSGIVING

THE BIBLE TEACHES US TO GIVE THANKS TO GOD AND TO BE THANKFUL UNTO HIM.

AS SOON AS YOU HEAR THAT, SOME OF YOU MAY THINK WHAT HAVE I GOT TO BE THANKFUL FOR BECAUSE OF THE CIRCUMSTANCES THAT YOU ARE IN NOW OR HOW CAN I THANK GOD WHEN I AM IN SORROW AND DO NOT KNOW WHAT TO DO AND THINKING YOURS IS A HOPELESS CASE AS YOU LOOK AROUND!  BELOVED, THERE IS A GOD IN HEAVEN WHO WILL HELP YOU AND WORK MIRACLES FOR YOU AS YOU LOOK UP TO HIM AND CALL ON HIM!

OUR SCRIPTURE IS FOUND IN 1 THESS. 5: 18, “IN EVERYTHING GIVE THANKS: FOR THIS IS THE WILL OF GOD IN CHRIST JESUS CONCERNING YOU.”

MAN YEARS AGO I HAD A SERIOUS PROBLEM THAT THREATHENED TO MAKE SHIP-WRECK OF MY FAITH IN GOD.  I WAS PRAYING ABOUT IT FOR SOMETIME AND I WAS EXAMINING MYSELF FROM TIME TO TIME SO THAT GOD COULD ANSWER ME.  NO ANSWER CAME.   I TOO FELT HOPELESS AND FORSAKEN BY GOD FOR HE WAS NOT HEARING ME WHEN I HAD A REAL BIG PROBLEM.   IT WAS THIS SCRIPTURE ‘IN EVERYTHING GIVE THANKS FOR THIS IS THE WILL OF GOD SEEMED TO CONFRONT ME.  THIS IS  MY EXPERIENCE REGARDING THIS SCRIPTURE.

 AT THAT TIME I WAS READING THE BOOK, “PRISON TO PRAISE” BY MERLIN CAROTHERS.  WHEN THIS SCRIPTURE CAME UP I SAID LORD HOW CAN I GIVE YOU THANKS FOR THIS SITUATION.  YOU KNOW HOW HEAVY MY HEART IS AND I HAVE BEEN CALLING ON YOU BUT YOU SEEM FAR AWAY.  HOWEVER THIS SCTIPTURE KEPT CONFRONTING ME AND I COULD NOT SEEM TO GO FURTHER WITH THE BOOK.  I READ IT AGAIN, ‘IN EVERYTHING GIVE THANKS”  AND I SAID BUT IN THIS THING I CANNOT GIVE THANKS TO YOU.   THEN, BY HIS SPIRIT I SAW IT – IN EVERYTHING GIVE THANKS FOR THIS IS THE WILL OF GOD IN CHRIST JESUS -  CAN YOU SEE IT?  THIS IS THE WILL OF GOD IN CHRIST JESUS.  IN OTHER WORDS, I AM TELLING YOU WHAT I WANT YOU TO DO AND YOU ARE SAYING YOU ARE UNABLE TO DO IT.  THAT IS NOT DOING THE WILL OF GOD.  I REALIZED GOD WAS NOT SAYING TO GIVE HIM THANKS FOR THE TRIAL OR BURDEN OR CIRCUMSTANCE I AM IN,  BUT HE WANTS ME TO OBEY HIS INSTRUCTIONS TO GIVE THANKS BECAUSE HE IS ABLE TO CHANGE MY CIRCUMSTANCE FOR HE IS ABOVE ALL!

I PUT THE BOOK DOWN, GOT ON MY KNEES AND SAID TO THE LORD, I AM GOING TO PRAISE YOU IN OBEDIENCE TO YOUR WORD.  I WILL MAKE MY WILL OBEY YOUR WILL.  I STARTED TO PRAISE HIM BY SINGING A FEW CHORUSES THAT CAME TO MIND AND SOME HYMNS PRAISING GOD AND GIVING HIM THANKS AND SOON I WAS LOST IN WORSHIP AND ENJOYED MY FELLOWSHIP WITH HIM.  I COULD NOT GET TO THE BOOK IMMEDIATELY AFTER BUT I LOST MY BURDEN AND THE WEIGHT THAT I WAS CARRYING AND NOW HAD CONFIDENCE THAT HE IS MUCH BIGGER THAN MY PROBLEM!   MANYS OTHER SCRIPTURES CAME TO MY MIND AND I COULD SEE HOW BIG, HOW MARVELLOUS AND HOW WONDERFUL HE IS, AND I WOULD PRAISE HIM AND GIVE HIM THANKS FREELY TRULY THANKFUL FOR WHO HE IS. 

IN A FEW DAYS THE PROBLEM WAS SOLVED IN SUCH AN EASY WAY AND THEN I WONDERED WHY WAS I SO TROUBLED AND SCARED OF THIS SITUATION.  HALLELUJAH!  GLORY TO GOD!  GOD WILL BLESS OBEDIENCE WHEN HE SPEAKS.

GOD IS STILL GOD AND HE MOVES IN MYSERIOUS WAYS HIS WONDERS TO PERFORM!!  I HAVE SINCE LEARNED AND AM STILL LEARNING TO JUST OBEY HIS VOICE AND TO GIVE HIM THANKS IN SPITE OF ALL THE ODDS STACKED UP AGAINST ME KEEPING MY EYES ON HIM – THE AUTHOR AND FINISHER OF MY FAITH! 

YOU ARE NOT THANKING HIM FOR THE SITAUTION BUT YOU ARE GIVING THANKS BECAUSE YOUR GOD IS GREATER THAN ANY PROBLEM YOU MAY HAVE!  

GOD IS FAR ABOVE ALL AND WHEN WE SEE HIM ABOVE ALL ELSE, OUR PRAISE AND WORSHIP WITH THANKSGIVING WILL DRAW HIS PRESENCE DOWN AND MIRACLES WILL HAPPEN!

BELOVED IT DOES NOT MATTER HOW GREAT IS YOUR NEED WHATEVER IT IS, OR HOW HARD YOUR STRUGGLE IS OR HOW IMPOSSIBLE YOUR SITUATION MAY SEEM, LET THE SPIRIT OF GOD SHOW YOU HOW BIG YOUR GOD IS!

THANK GOD FOR LOVING US SO MUCH THAT HE SACRIFICED HIS SINLESS SON ON THE CROSS OF CALVARY TO PAY THE PENALTY FOR THE SIN OF THE WHOLE WORLD.

THANK GOD FOR JESUS CHRIST WHO IN OBEDIENCE TO HIS FATHER WILLINGLY ENDURED THE PAIN AND SHAME ON THE CROSS SHEDDING HIS HOLY BLOOD SO WE COULD BE CLEANSED FROM SIN AND BE RECONCILED TO GOD

THANK YOU JESUS FOR PUTTING AWAY SIN, SICKNESS, THE CURSE AND DELIVERING US FROM THE POWER OF SATAN.

THANK YOU FATHER FOR ACCEPTING US, JUSTIFYING US, SANCTIFYING US AND REMOVING CONDMNATION FROM US THROUGH THE BLOOD OF JESUS CHRIST.

THANK YOU FATHER FOR YOUR HOLY SPIRIT WHO GAVE US A REVELATION OF YOUR LOVE AND OF THE SACRIFICE OF YOUR SON, JESUS CHRIST AND SAVING US!

GOD IS SOVEREIGNLY IN CONTROL – NO MATTER WHAT YOU ARE STRUGGLING WITH - JUST BELIEVE! 

THERE IS NO OTHER GOD AND OUR GOD IS NOT ONLY THE CREATOR BUT HIS WILL ALONE IS TO BE DONE ON EARTH FOR HE WORKS IN THE KINGDOM OF MEN!

GOD CAN MAKE A WAY WHERE THERE IS NO WAY FOR HE MAKES THE DESSERT TO BLOSSOM AND MAKES CROOKED THINGS STRAIGHT.

GOD SAID, CALL UNTO ME AND I WILL ANSWER YOU AND SHOW YOU GREAT AND MIGHTY THINGS!  HALLELUJAH!! FOR GOD WILL DO WHAT HE SAID HE WILL DO!

LET THIS THANKSGIVING TIME BE A TIME OF OBEYING THIS SCRIPTURE IN GIVING HIM THANKS AND RECEIVE HIS BLESSINGS IN ABUNDANCE!!

Margaret Wright