TODAY IS…

a perfect day for giving thanks.

“The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy, and I will give thanks to Him in song.”  Psalm 28:7 NIV

November is traditionally the month in which a day is set aside specifically for giving thanks. In a way it is a shame that a day has to be set aside specifically for this purpose. At the same time, it can be a blessing that we do have this day to remind us of just how much we have to be thankful for. People should certainly be encouraged to continue to celebrate this traditional time of family togetherness.

But we all need to try to remember the many reasons we have to be thankful every day.

“I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them.” (1 Timothy 2:1 NLT).

If we are to truly be thankful for all that God is, we must be thankful for all of His children. While we recognize that many of them are lost, we should thank God for each and every one of them and ask God to watch over them, and to help us find ways to help them find their way in this difficult world.

Certainly our spouses should be at the very top of our lists of things that we are humbly thankful to God for, and we should let them know that we love them on a daily basis. Equally important is turning to them frequently and reminding them that, “Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God.” (Philippians 1:3 NLT).

The same can, and should, be said to our children. Our spouses and our children alone should prove to us that we need to give thanks every day for them, and not just reserve it for one designated day, or season, each year.

But it does not stop with family.

Each one of us can make lists of people and things that we should be thankful for on a daily basis. If we did this, we would be surprised at how long the list is.

God has given even the poorest of us much to be thankful for. We need to be focused on telling Him how grateful we are.

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” (Philippians 4:6 NASB).

Make today, and every day, a day of Thanksgiving to the One who gives us so much to be thankful for!

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Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson