Have I got the house decorated? Do I have all of the groceries? What day should I start baking? What can I make ahead? Do I have the bedrooms ready for company? That used to be me! I started early so I could enjoy Thanksgiving day and now I do not host anymore and hardly have to cook! And the men are much better cooks than me!
Thanksgiving is a treasured holiday for many but we tend to romanticize past Thanksgivings. We want everything to be just perfect and we put so much stress on ourselves. Thanksgiving is an expression of joy, not because of what God has provided for us but because He is the Provider. Our joy does not come from what we have but from Who He is. Giving thanks opens our eyes to see more of Him and less of ourselves and our problems.
Paul wrote the Thessalonians, 1 Thessalonians 5: 18, “Give thanks in all circumstances.” The Bible doesn’t command us to feel thankful in all circumstances but to “give thanks in all circumstances.” When I begin to praise God in a difficult situation, even if I don’t feel like it, I begin to see things differently. I see His glory and how He is using the situation. He brings good from bad. Romans 8: 28, "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."
"Even when life may be difficult, we should thank God for all He does for us - which we do not deserve." Billy Graham
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