Thanksgiving Prayer Thoughts

“Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name.” –1 Chronicles 29:13

If ever we could think of nothing else to thank God for, we could thank Him for His Presence. He is with us always—wherever we are, whatever our circumstances.

That said, if God’s Presence is the one thing we can count on when all else fails, perhaps it’s the first thing we should thank Him for this year!

Sometime today, slip away from the chaos for a few moments and spend some time thanking God for Who He is. Make a list of every attribute and biblical name for Him you can think of. Reflect on what each means to you personally.

Next, thank Him for what He’s done. Think back over your life journey, and look for God’s fingerprints all over it. Thank Him for His work in and through your life.

Thank Him also for what He will do. This is an act of faith—anticipating His work in this world, in your life, and in the lives of your loved ones. We don’t know what this will look like when God’s finished, but we know we’ll be amazed when the work is done! Thank Him for this hope.

Finally, if the weather allows, take a walk outside. Thank God for everything you see that reminds you He is there.

“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.” –Psalm 19:1

Thank Him for revealing Himself to You through His creation and for drawing your attention to it this day, that you won’t take it for granted, but will hear the rocks cry out that God is here, that God is great beyond comprehension, that God is in control of everything.

“The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord is on his heavenly throne.” –Psalm 11:4b

In her book, The God of All Comfort, Hannah Whitall Smith says, “It is a fact that we see what we look at, and cannot see what we look away from; and we cannot look unto Jesus while we are looking at ourselves.”

It’s good to thank God for our blessings. Let’s continue to do that, especially today. But today let’s start by thanking God for being God. Let’s take our eyes off of that which cannot last and thank God for the Presence we’ll enjoy through eternity!

Happy Thanksgiving! Bless God today!

A New Kind of New Year's Resolution

Am I jumping the gun? (Ooh! There's another strange phrase for me to research!) Thanksgiving isn’t even here, and I’m talking about New Year’s? Too early?

Actually, I’m just in time!

Today is the last Sunday of the Christian year. A new year begins with the first Sunday of Advent next week!

I didn’t know this until today. Well, I knew Advent starts next week, but I didn’t realize it was the beginning of a whole, new Christian year.

My new kind of New Year’s Resolution is to learn more about this Christian year this year.

You see, I come from a not-so-liturgical denomination. Yes. We celebrate Christmas and Easter. Many of our churches set up and light Advent candles through that season. We know all about Pentecost and some about Lent. Epiphany? May need insight into that. Our ministers preach what God’s Spirit lays on their hearts each week rather than follow the Lexionary and Christian calendar, though some feel led to follow these, and that’s okay! So long as they’re preaching God’s Word, we’re happy.

The Christian calendar just isn’t something we talk about a lot. But this year, I’m feeling strangely drawn to it. I want to look into it more closely. Christian tradition is important, and there’s much I can learn from my liturgical friends. I’ll be reading through a little book called A Guide to Prayer for All Who Seek God by Norman Shawchuck and Rueben P. Job and exploring other resources, too. Whenever I discover something interesting, I’ll share! Not weekly. Not every Sunday. But as the Spirit leads. (I may be studying that which is liturgical, but I’m still a Nazarene!)

My study doesn’t officially begin until next week, but I read the introductory material this morning and learned that today is Reign of Christ Sunday! Wow! The introduction didn’t elaborate on that, but I’m speculating that if this is the last Sunday of the Christian year and the first starts with looking forward to Christ’s birth that today we’re looking forward to the Second Coming and Christ’s eternal reign. (Wait! Don’t tell me if I’m wrong! I don’t want to start at the end of the book! My hands are over my ears and I’m singing loudly, so I can’t hear you. Please don’t spoil the surprise!) For now I’ll just enjoy my speculation and think about our eternal Lord, Jesus Christ, today.

If the Christian calendar concept is somewhat new to you, too, please feel free to study along with me this year. And if you’ve grown up in a liturgical denomination, I’ll greatly appreciate any comments that help to enlighten me. (Just not about the significance of today's Reign of Christ Sunday. That's next-year-this-time's surprise!)

Happy New Year’s Eve—so to speak. Reflect on Christ’s eternal reign as you worship today, all day!

"The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever" --Revelation 11:15b

Hallelujah! Praise His name. Amen.

Book Review: 101 Simple & Thoughtful Ways to Give This Christmas Away

Wow! Matthew West wrote a book! A good book! Usually he writes songs—really good songs. But the song he wrote for the latest Veggie Tales movie gave him the idea for a book, so he wrote that, too. It’s really good. (Did I say that already?)

101 Simple & Thoughtful Ways to Give This Christmas Away is a small hardback (6.5 x 6.5). Each page lists one idea for giving Christmas away followed by West’s explanation of the idea and a Bible verse. (I had no idea there were so many Bible verses about giving, yet they were all familiar verses. Seeing them all together in one place made me realize maybe I take them for granted sometimes.)

Throughout the book, West shares personal stories of times he was challenged to give in these ways. I especially appreciated the stories of his grandfather and father giving to others in ways that taught him. Some ideas are extremely simple, like giving a smile, others are more challenging, like giving till it hurts or giving to an enemy. But each idea is well presented, thought-provoking, and easy to understand. (I especially appreciated #16.) Some of West’s ideas draw attention to well-known charities such as Operation Christmas Child and the Salvation Army.

If you are looking for simple ideas to make Christmas giving more meaningful this year—and for giving all year round!—I highly recommend this cute, little book.

Thank you Tyndale House Publishers for sending me this complimentary copy to review.

Immeasurably More

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” –Ephesians 3:20-21

Through all that Alex could remember of his nine years, he had been sharing a room with either an older or a younger brother--the curse of being in the middle, you might say. He’d had enough. If we were moving, he wanted his own room.

But we were moving to the Netherlands where, we were warned, houses and yards are small. We decided we’d better prepare Alex for the worst.

He wasn’t discouraged by the news, however. Instead, he started dreaming of all the things he wanted in a new house. “Not only should everyone have their own bedroom, but the house should have a big yard. It should be on a quiet street where kids can ride their bikes without worrying about cars.” Pretty soon we all joined in the game: our dream house would include an office, a fireplace, and a swimming pool, too.

I didn’t really expect to find all of that in our new home, but I did pray that Alex would have his own bedroom, the big yard, and the quiet street. Those things were important this time--but still they seemed too much to hope for.

Imagine my surprise when the first home we looked at had everything we’d dreamed of--except the swimming pool. But the bonus playroom and reading corner more than made up for that, especially in the windy, rainy Netherlands where a pool would have been more trouble than fun anyway! God’s wisdom beat our imaginations again--why was I surprised?

God, Your power to provide amazes me. More than all we ask or imagine, You provide all we need--and more! Future homes will be different, but we’ll trust You to know what’s best for this family and in Your ability to provide. Thank You, Lord! Amen.

Being Comfortable

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.” –2 Corinthians 1:3-5

When I hear the word uncomfortable, I usually think of trying to sleep on a lumpy mattress or wearing a heavy sweater on a hot summer day. Those are uncomfortable things to do.

But when I dissect the word uncomfortable, I realize it really means un-able to be comforted. That’s an entirely different thing.

For example, when one of our sons was a newborn, he had colic. No matter how much my husband and I rocked, walked, patted, and burped him, he was uncomfortable. We weren’t able to comfort him. He could receive no comfort from us.

(Thankfully, he outgrew this. He’s a perfectly pleasant person to be around now. I offer that encouragement to comfort any of my readers who have colicky babies right now. This too shall pass. Hang in there, my poor and tired, long-suffering friends!)

So what’s my point? Christians often find themselves in uncomfortable circumstances, but they should never be uncomfortable. Do you see the difference? We serve the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles! But we must allow Him to comfort us.

Why? So that we can comfort others!

If we walk around with sad faces all the time, whining about our discomfort in our circumstances, we won’t encourage anyone! Yet when we receive God’s comfort in trying times, others see this and become hopeful that they can be comforted, too. By receiving God’s comfort for ourselves, we make it possible for others to receive His comfort as well. Our comfort in times of suffering overflows to everyone!

This is good news!

So let’s not be uncomfortable. Let’s seek encouragement and hope from the God of all comfort. Let’s let Him walk us and rock us until the tears go away, and we can go about our day in joy and peace. It may take some time—that’s okay. Taking the needed time to be comforted is important. We can’t fake it; we must allow God to truly comfort us. We just can’t refuse to be comforted, to let God do His work in our lives. That’s being uncomfortable. That’s what we must avoid.

God of all comfort, thank You for working in my life to comfort me and through my life to comfort others. May others see Your amazing work and seek it for themselves that they can be comforted, too. Amen.

Parachute Prayer #42

“Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.’” –Matthew 9:37-38

What a perfect verse for November! We’re surrounded by reminders of the harvest—apples, pumpkins, Thanksgiving décor! As we prepare for Thanksgiving, these remind us to give thanks for all God has provided all year long.

But though I am eternally thankful, I am also concerned about the harvest Jesus was referring to. There are people out there who have much, yet without Jesus, don’t really have anything. There are people who have little and need Jesus, too.

Jesus says there are plenty of hearts out there ready to receive all He has to give—ready to be brought into the Kingdom of God—ready to celebrate Thanksgiving completely, not only for what they have, but for salvation and a life with Jesus, too! When we see signs of harvest, let’s pray as Jesus told His disciples to! Let’s pray that He’ll send workers into His harvest field who will faithfully lead ready hearts to Him.

And while we’re at it, let’s not forget to ask Him to show us what we can do. We may be just the workers He needs to reach those near our homes for Him. We may be the very workers He's asked us to pray He'll send! (Now don't let that thought scare you off; pray for harvest workers anyway. Unsaved people waiting! Pray for workers for them.)

Lord of the harvest, please send many workers into Your field. The harvest is plentiful; call Your people to bring it in. Make each of us open to what You’re leading us to do. We know You'll help us because You love those who are waiting in the field. Thank You, Lord! May this year’s harvest be the best one yet! In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Book Review: The Sacred Meal

Nora Gallagher has a unique writing style. I enjoyed reading The Sacred Meal, and it definitely made me think. I agreed with some statements from every chapter, but at the start of each, I wondered if I would. Rather than state her point at the outset, Gallagher reminisces, moving from story to thought to another story, connections not always obvious until the end when she wraps it all up and, suddenly, her point is finally clear.

Though I liked her writing style and enjoyed her stories and found some statements in each chapter to embrace wholeheartedly, there were a few issues that greatly concerned me. Throughout the book, Gallagher refers to historical, human Jesus and seems to ignore the God Who came to save. In her chapter on the history of communion, she leaves out the biblical accounts of the Last Supper, of Jesus Himself giving us this sacrament. In fact, she compares communion to the Muslim’s Ramadan and the Jewish Seder saying that since all three faiths come from Abraham, they are bound to have common rituals. All three may involve food, but that doesn’t make them similar, historically or otherwise.

Further, Gallagher seems to define communion as something that unites people, that links them together with some mystic bond. That’s true, but only if we recognize Jesus as that bond. We are united as we remember His sacrifice, as we reflect on what He did for us on the cross, as we worship Him together with gratitude. Gallagher mentions being thankful, but there doesn’t seem to be any worship or recognition of Christ involved. At the end of one chapter, she suggests it doesn’t matter what we believe, but only how we live. I get the impression she believes we save ourselves by following Christ’s example, by living good lives, that we don’t really need him; He’s just a good life model to follow. This concerns me. How we live is important, true. But living the way God wants us to is only possible if we’ve accepted Christ as our Savior, if He lives in us.

The Sacred Meal is a thought-provoking book with some good ideas, but I hesitate to recommend it. If you do choose to read it, read the biblical accounts of the Last Supper first, be clear on what your church believes about Communion, and compare and contrast with other books and articles on the topic. I don’t think Gallagher should have the only word.

Reflections on One Word

“God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied.” –Matthew 5:6NLT

What a difference one word makes! The New International Version of the Bible is my favorite. I spend most of my Bible study and devotional time in that translation. But every now and then, I like to read from another version to see how other scholars have interpreted God’s Word from its original Greek, Hebrew, or Aramaic. It especially catches my attention when they insert unfamiliar words into a familiar passage like the Beautitudes (Matthew 5:5-12). In the case of verse 6, they changed the NIV’s righteousness to justice and sent me down a whole new rabbit trail of thought.

When I think of hungering and thirsting for righteousness, I think of longing to be made righteous personally. I think of my own failings, sins, fallen nature and how hungering and thirsting for righteousness led me to Christ Who took my sins on Himself on the cross that He could clothe me in His righteousness. Thanks to Christ, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be satisfied!

But the word justice changes everything. When I hunger and thirst for justice, which I often do, I’m demanding that life be made fair, that those who hurt others pay for their crimes, that everybody get what’s rightfully coming to them.

This world is full of people who are hungering and thirsting for justice. But demanding justice is an impossible way to live. In their book, Finding Purpose Beyond Our Pain, Paul Meier and David Henderson offer two examples: If we treat two children with different IQ’s the same, one will excel and one will fail. Is this just? Yet if we treat them differently, offering more time and aid to the one with the lower IQ, is this fair to the one who needs less? If we set the fine for speeding at $200 per offense are we being fair to the school teacher who has so much less than the billionaire? But if we fine her less for committing the same crime is this fair to the billionaire? (p. 6)

Trying to make everything fair in this life is a frustrating exercise in futility. And when I think about demanding that everyone get what they deserve, good or bad, God gently reminds me that I really don’t want what I really deserve. Jesus died to save me from that. Thanks to Him, I live under grace, not law.

Which led me to the next Beatitude! “God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy” (Matthew 5:7NLT) When I read this, I noticed that when we hunger and thirst for justice, God promises satisfaction. He takes care of it. We leave our perceived need in His hands. But we are to be merciful. We do something. We show something. We offer mercy to others, and receive it from God in return. Our hands are tied as far as justice is concerned, but mercy is something we can give. This passage doesn’t say God blesses those who make everything right and fair. He blesses those who long for a world that is right and fair; they will be satisfied. It’s a promise they can claim, but God will do the work. In the meantime, we offer mercy to those who’ve hurt us, knowing our God is merciful to us.

Wow!

But that’s not all. Verse 5 says, “God blesses those who are humble, for they will inherit the whole earth” (NLT). As I continued my devotional reading today, I came across this verse, “The one thing I ask of the Lord—the thing I seek most—is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, delighting in the Lord’s perfection and meditating in his Temple” (Psalm 27:4NLT). To me, that’s the ultimate definition of humility. We seek God. We live in His Presence. We leave justice in His capable hands. And we show mercy to the people who surround us each day.

In her book, Jesus Calling, Sarah Young says, “Instead of grasping and controlling, you are learning to release and receive” (p. 326). Instead of grasping and controlling and demanding life be fair, I release it all, dwell in God’s Presence, and thankfully receive all He gives. I can’t make everything fair. I may hunger and thirst for justice, but I must trust God to satisfy that need. Jesus promises He will. In the meantime, I show mercy. I am forgiven; I forgive.

Lord, I often long for a perfect world where everything is just and right and fair. I see so much wrong that I cannot fix. Help me to release this to You knowing You will make everything right in Your time. While I wait, I’ll walk with You, delighting in Your perfection and meditating in Your Temple, offering mercy to those who offend me that, hopefully, they will find Your grace, too. Teach me to release and receive. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

Parachute Prayer #41

We've all had days where everything we try to do goes wrong. Other times, we schedule baby steps toward reaching big goals: "I'll do this by this date, then this by this date, then this by this date," and so on. But brick walls appear just before each little goal, hindering our progress . . . causing much frustration.


Today's Parachute Prayer is to pray when brick walls block our way. It's hard, I know. But on a bad day when all's going wrong, dropping everything to ask God for wisdom, assistance, even blessing not only comforts us, but also often helps us to find a better way. Who knows? Maybe the brick wall is something to be thankful for. Maybe God has a different plan for our day. Maybe God is challenging our commitment or using the obstacle to strengthen our resolve. If we don't talk to Him about it, we'll never know--and we may never reach our goals. We'll just get many bruises from throwing ourselves at an unmoving wall, go to bed exhausted, and have to face it all again another day.

When obstacles confound us, it's worth our time to stop and pray.

Grace Shown Seen or Unseen

“Though grace is shown to the wicked, they do not learn righteousness; even in a land of uprightness they go on doing evil and regard not the majesty of the Lord.” –Isaiah 26:10

In yesterday’s post, I mentioned that the drunk driver involved in the accident had received a gracious wake-up call (because no one was hurt by his actions) and that I hoped he would listen and respond. That reminded me of this verse in Isaiah 26 which tells us that grace is shown to the wicked—to those who don’t live for God, to those who aren’t yet even thinking of turning to God.

I love that! Though the verse focuses on the consequences of not learning from gracious wake-up calls, I love knowing that God gives them! God loves all people, regardless of what they have done or how they respond to Him. He is constantly working behind the scenes to teach righteousness, to draw all who don’t yet know Him into His Kingdom.

That drunk driver now has a choice. He can recognize God’s majesty in the events of the accident and praise God for sparing him from a murder conviction on top of his DUI, or he can learn nothing from the experience and go on doing evil just as he was.

Sometimes those who do wrong get second chances. When they do, rather than cry, “No! That’s not fair!” as we're sometimes prone to do,* let’s pray they’ll see God’s majesty at work and respond to His gracious ways.

Lord, please show grace to the wicked, so they will learn righteousness. And please help Your children to live uprightly—in Jesus—that the unsaved will see and respond to the Your majesty!


*I'm most definitely not crying, "No fair," this time. God's grace toward the drunk driver spared two innocent lives, including the life of my loved one. Sometimes God's grace toward unsaved people helps His children, too!