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November 26, 2007
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=========================== TODAY'S ARTICLE ==========================
Always with Thanksgiving, by Phil Ware
When I was a little boy, my dad sometimes filled in as a preacher at
little congregations. What he lacked in polish, he made up for in
passion and colorful stories. One of his favorite sermons that I heard
several times was on prayer. Dad's specific emphasis was always
including thanksgiving in each and every prayer. He grew tired of
"gimmie prayers" -- the kind of prayers that only ask for things for
others and ourselves, but have little praise of God and even less
thanksgiving given to him.
Dad always felt that we could thank God regardless of our circumstances
because of who he is, what he has done for us, what he has promised to
do in our future, and what he is continuing to do in our lives. Dad's
infamous line in his prayer sermon went something like this: "Even pigs
grunt in appreciation to their master when he brings them their slop,
surely we should pause long enough to talk to the Father and include a
few words of thanksgiving."
While I know this isn't the most appetizing image, nor is it the
deepest theological statement known to Christian communication, it does
colorfully make the point. In many ways, the Thanksgiving holiday in
the USA demonstrates it. We dedicate one holiday a year to giving
thanks to our Creator for his blessings and care for our world and for
us. Even on most of our best years, shopping and football still swallow
up the "giving thanks" focus of the Thanksgiving holiday.
Those prayers must be offered always with thanksgiving!
Our family has been truly blessed with Thanksgiving this year. We've
been with all of our immediate family. We've given thanks privately as
a family and publicly with God's people. We've enjoyed a beautiful
snowfall, games, football, conversation, recreation, shopping, and lots
of incredibly good food. We've been blessed to be able to give thanks!
However, my prayer coming out of this Thanksgiving is for more than
safe travel, good health, and a blessed Christmas season. My deepest
prayer is that we all will be committed to thanking and praising God
every day, in every prayer, with genuine admiration, adoration, and
appreciation. God's blessings are rich and real no matter what our
apparent circumstances suggest. Our conversations with the Father
should always be seasoned with a strong portion of thanksgiving.
Remember Paul's words to the Philippians:
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your
gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious
about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition,
with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of
God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and
your minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:4-6 TNIV, emphasis mine).
Paul taught the early Christians that joy and peace come to hearts that
pray ... but those prayers must be offered always with thanksgiving!
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(c) 2007 Phil Ware <phil@heartlight.org>. All rights reserved.
RELATED LINKS:
* Six Dollars Worth of Thanksgiving
http://www.heartlight.org/articles/200311/20031128_6dollars.html
* The Thanksgiving Hooke
http://www.heartlight.org/articles/200511/20051124_hooke.html
* Coming Home
http://www.heartlight.org/articles/200711/20071119_cominghome.html
* Southern Hills Church of Christ
http://www.southernhillschurch.org
This article can be found on the web at:
http://www.heartlight.org/articles/200711/20071126_alwaysthanksgiving.html
=========================== FEATURED PRODUCT =========================
THE SECRET MESSAGE OF JESUS: UNCOVERING THE TRUTH THAT COULD CHANGE EVERYTHING, by Brian McLaren
Unafraid of controversy or the uncomfortable gray areas of life,
McLaren's quest is to find the essential message of Jesus' life - even
if it overturns our conventional ideas, priorities, and practices.
http://shopping.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/link?253
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