A Time of Giving Thanks
Between now and Reformation Day (which is always the last Sunday in October) we’ll be focusing on giving thanks to God in our liturgy. The Bible has a great deal to say about thanking and praising God for all sorts of reasons…
1Chronicles 16:34 says, “Oh give thanks to the LORD…his steadfast love endures forever!”
The whole chapter lists several reasons to thank God, but chief among them is the fact that God loves us. Most of us give him plenty of reasons to be upset with us. Some of us may push the limits of his love with bad behaviors of one sort or another, and others may challenge the warmth of his love with the coolness of our own response…either way God’s love toward us remains “steadfast.” He loves us through all the reasons we give him to ignore or grow angry with us. This is indeed reason enough to be thankful!
Ps 95: 1-7 is a beautiful Psalm of praise that says: “Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving…For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also. The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land…the LORD [is] our Maker! He is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.”
This passage reminds us that God is much greater than us—he is King of the universe, and Creator of all that is. But he is also our shepherd—a caregiver and protector. He cares deeply about each one of us. And that, too, is reason to give him thanks.
Phil 4:5-7 says: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”
Here Paul mentions thanksgiving as part of a strategy for combating anxiety in our lives. He says that being thankful for God’s many gifts to us is part of a life path leading to personal peace. Which is a good reason to cultivate a thankful spirit.
Isa 12:4-5 tells us: “Give thanks to the LORD, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples…he has done gloriously; let this be made known in all the earth.”
Isaiah says thanksgiving needs to be a part of our witness to those around us. Our gratitude is a means of introducing other people to God—a God who cares for and loves his people. Sadly, many people do not know a God of such grace…in fact, this is one of the most special features of Lutheranism. We know a much more loving and gracious God than many other Christians. And that, too, is something to be thankful for.
Obviously, the American holiday celebrating Thanksgiving falls later in the year—when in church we're fixing our eyes on Christ as King and then preparing to move into Advent. So, we’re going to spend the last weeks of the long Pentecost season watching nature turn from green to yellow, red, orange, and brown. And pondering all that we have to be thankful for. Some of those things are material—and a lot more are spiritual! May we be a thankful people, and may that make us a more humble, compassionate, and godly people.
Peace,
Pastor Derek
