In this life, I truly have a lot to be thankful for. I have an awesome family, great friends, a roof over my head (2 actually), and I have a personal relationship with the creator of the universe. During this time of the year, I am genuinely overwhelmed with how good it is to live the way I do. I am surrounded by friends and family constantly, Thanksgiving is always great, Black Friday is crazy, my birthday is soon, and then after that is finals and then three weeks of home-cooked meals with Christmas Eve, Christmas, and New Years.
All of these things converge into one mass that truly blows my mind. How did I get so lucky? God is good, and yes, it is certainly easy to say that when things are good, but when things are bad, we can truly press into him and learn more about his character and his unceasing love for us. Crazy!
There was a message at a church called Reality down in Carpenteria, about 20 mins south of Santa Barbara, titled "Thanksgiving is a verb." I listened to the Podcast today on my way down to the desert to have our Thanksgiving dinner with my grandma.
This message was powerful, the pastor, Britt Merrick, is truly an awesome pastor that really has the spirit speaking through him. If it wasn't so far away from my house (about 48 miles round trip) I probably would go more often.
Anyway, we as human beings are messed up (duh!), and it is very difficult for us to continually submit to God and give him praise and thankfulness for giving us another opportunity to grow closer to him and learn more about his love for us.
In 1 Thessalonians 5:18 Paul writes "...in everything, give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
Colossians 3:17 says "And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father."
Both of these scriptures are pretty dang cool. By giving thanks to Him in all things, we are putting him in the right place in our lives--by keeping him above us, as we submit to Him. By default, it keeps us in our place by remaining submissive to Him as Lord of our lives.
I hope and pray that each day I live, not just the fourth Thursday of November, I actively and intentionally give thanks in all things. Happy Thanksgiving! Keep it a verb and not a noun!
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