GBOD

As I was thinking about Thanksgiving I was thinking about the word itself; after all how do you give thanks? I remembered from my school days that the Pilgrims and the Native Americans brought the best of what they had to share with each other on the first Thanksgiving. My own family gatherings have always been a time when we all brought and made the very best of what we had to share with each other, as well. Certainly in scripture we are told to bring our very best, our "first fruits," when offering thanks to God. So all of this leads me to the conclusion that "thanksgiving" has to do with giving the very best we have and sharing it with others.

I then started to ponder what it is we do on Thanksgiving that may give me a clue as to how one gives thanks. In our homes sometimes we make a list or go around the table stating what we are thankful for: family, friends, food, work, good health, home, car, etc. How can we turn this being thankful into giving thanks? What might that look like — giving/bringing our very best, sharing it, as an act of worship to God?

As youth workers we often organize activities for our students such as serving in a local soup kitchen, or nursing home, sponsoring a food drive or raising money for those in need. This is certainly a way that we give thanks and is a very tangible reminder of how immensely blessed we are. Usually at holiday time we feel good about doing these things; and we say that we should be part of this kind of service all year long, so we can be thankful everyday. But, reality is, still, we quickly forget. So how we can give thanks as part of our daily lives?

We can take the "list" of things for which we are thankful and combine it with the idea of giving our very best and sharing it with others. When I mix my list with the idea of giving my best, here are some ways I think it’s possible to give thanks:

Work — We all know we are to "work as unto the Lord" and most of us realize that being in ministry means we do work for the Lord... but do we always act that way? Do we sometimes forget we work for the Lord and feel more like we work for the Pastors, parents or committees of our church? Many of us also have "regular jobs" that make it even harder to always work this way. In remembering we work for the Lord in all that we do should inspire us to always bring our best and put a different attitude on even the mundane things that we do.

Family — You plan and do fun things with other people’s kids... what do you do to make time with your own family special? What kinds of things can you do to give your family the very best of you (not the tired, distracted, you)? How about your own parents? We work with our students to have meaningful relationships with their parents — Do you call your mama or go fishing with your dad?

Health — We are thankful we have good health, but what do we do to make it that way or keep it that way? Does your body ask you "what have you done for me lately?" Do you make time to take care of yourself, eat right, exercise and yes REST?!

Home — Of course we are thankful we have a home, how can we give thanks to a house? What about those wonderful parts of our home we never take time to enjoy? Take a swim in the pool, enjoy that huge bathtub, sit out on your porch or deck, or simply take a walk in your neighborhood.

The incredible gift of our Lord Jesus Christ is the greatest blessing we have, so how can we possibly express how incredibly grateful we are for Jesus’ taking on our sin, dying on the cross and being the way for us to be with God? By giving thanks, by giving of the very best of ourselves, we are demonstrating our love for Jesus. We are offering our lives as "living sacrifices."

By giving thanks as part of our daily lives we not only realize that God blesses us in the big, the small and the everyday, but it is also a witness to others of the love and grace of God. What better way is there to share the very best we have, our Lord, with others?

NRS Psalm 69:30 — I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving.

We will magnify him — make him easier for others to see — now isn’t that something else to be thankful for! I hope this gives you a starting point to think about how you can give thanks in the everydayness of your life and on Thanksgiving when we intentionally gather with family and friends we can feel extra blessed.

May your Thanksgiving Day be filled with praise, filled with joy and most of all filled with love and peace of Jesus.

Thoughts on Thanksgiving

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