I Will Give Thanks

“The Lord liveth, and blessed be my rock, and exalted be the God of the rock of my salvation… Therefore I will give thanks unto thee … and I will sing praises unto thy name…” (2 Samuel 22:47 & 50)

This is David speaking in all his eloquence. He is actually expressing thanks for winning a battle – a life and death situation. Most of the time, our situation is not that defining. We do have emergency life and death situations in our lives but probably not to the degree that David did. Nevertheless, we face crisis, turning points daily.

If you think about it forgetting to say prayer, read scriptures, give thanks are crisis. We get lax in our gratitude, in our worship and the next thing we know we aren’t even thinking about the Lord at all. Oh, we still believe in him, but we don’t realize that we are sliding away. I’m not here to give guilt trips. The only reason one should say prayer, read scriptures or give thanks is because they want to, and yet not doing so is a crisis.

I cease not to give thanks for you

Paul writing to the Ephesians said, “After I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers …” (Ephesians 1:15)

Isn’t that a cool thing to give thanks for? Sometimes I think we forget that those in leadership positions, the missionaries, the teachers, are the ones Satan works the hardest on. They need our thanks and prayers. Think about the new convert, or the recently baptized individual. We all need appreciation and prayers. It is good to say thank you in person, but it is also good to say, “Thank thee Lord for (name) who gave such a good talk, or lesson, or said a few kind words to me.   

When my precious daughter was in high school I worried about her a lot even as I did about my sons. It made such an impression on me the day she said to me, “Mother I know when you pray for me.”

What if in our private prayers we say, “Thank thee Lord that (child’s name) made his/her bed this morning,” or whatever.  Think of the positive influence such a prayer would have on the child.  What if we found a reason each day to be grateful for each member of our family? Suppose we told them in person and thanked the Lord for them in our private prayers. Think not only of what that would do for, them but think what it would do for us.   

Somewhere it is written that gratitude makes us glorious.  I think of the Savior and of his great sacrifice for each of us that we might return to our Father in Heaven. He is truly glorious and if we could but obtain a portion of that glory and share it with others this would be a better world. Remember to always be grateful for the sacrifice our Lord made for us and it will come back to us in bucket fulls. 

The Giving of Thanks accrues an Abundance of Grace

“For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God… For our light afflictions, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.” (2 Corinthians 4:15 &17)

In other words, everything that God does is for us that we might through the giving of thanks of many redound or accrue an abundant of grace because of his glory and greatness. As we give thanks we gain glory or graciousness and humility which makes us more fit for the celestial kingdom which helps us overcome our afflictions.

 Paul says here our light afflictions, but I think he means that any affliction we might have is light in comparison to those of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This lifetime is but a moment and then we are received into glory.

So give thanks, be positive, and see the good in all things, including our afflictions, and we will be made glorious. 

Feast of the Harvest--the first fruits of thy labor

 “And  it shall come to pass that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Acts2 :21)

This is Peter speaking to the people on the day of Pentecost. Curious, I looked up Pentecost to see what its meaning might be. It means fifty. The Feast of Pentecost happens fifty days after Passover according to Jewish law. It is also called the “Feast of the Harvest – the first fruits of thy labor.”  1 Corinthians 15:23) tells us that Christ became the first fruits of them that slept. That being so, Christ having completed his work here sent “another comforter… even the Spirit of truth” John (14: 13 -15) on the day of the Feast of the Harvest and the apostles and Disciples of Christ in that day became the first fruits of the Spirit.   

Some of us who are converts are the first fruits of our families in the Lord. I think of my dear grandmother who read her scriptures daily and lived by the percepts taught there.  Her example and love of our Lord Jesus Christ influenced my life to receive Christ. I see her influence in other members of the family and in their children and grandchildren.  We can all be examples to others through that Spirit of truth received on the day of Pentecost thousands of years later.

Enter with thanksgiving

“Know ye that the Lord he is God. It is he that hath made us and not we ourselves; We are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise. Be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the Lord is good. His mercy is everlasting, and his truth endureth to all generations.”  (Psalms 100:3-5)

Nothing wavering

“If any of you lack wisdom let him ask of God that giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering.” (James 1:5-6)

Who among us does not lack wisdom in some area? Of course, you know that when the scriptures say men it means mankind. I make no apologies for the lack of gender sensitivity. Asking “in faith nothing wavering” does not mean that you could perform feats of magic if you had faith and did not allow it to waver. It means instead that you use faith when asking the Holy Spirit that a thing is right. If the Spirit wavers, then this is not something that is approved of and even if you succeed in making it happen it was not by the Spirit. If instead by the Spirit, you know a thing is right, then nothing can stop it from happening if you have faith.

The Prison of Your Mind

“If I had the wings of an angel over these prison walls I would fly.” These are the words to a song my father used to sing to me as he played his guitar. Those words came back to me recently as I was developing a character, the antagonist, in one of my stories. I thought about how some people may be imprisoned within stone walls and yet their spirits cannot be restrained. Others are free to come and go at will, but their minds and spirits are bound as securely as if shackled to walls of cement surrounded by iron bars and barbed wire.

My personal opinion is there are no bad people. There are only people who are trapped in a prison either of their own making, or because of abuse or some genetic weakness.

Fear, I believe, is the strongest prison in the world and is reinforced by anger and hate. Addictions, of many kinds, pave the way to strengthen the chains through abuse and neglect. Minds so damaged often take years, even a lifetime, to free themselves, and many never do.

I believe that the strongest antidote for recovery includes forgiveness of self and others, and a belief in God or a higher power. Generous applications of understanding, knowledge of worth, and the ability to let the past go and move on, are necessary to make these strong medicines effective. 

Fear does not come from God. "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love and of a sound mind." (2 Timothy 1:7) With him there is peace, and love.