154 Sermon Illustrations on Gratitude

HOW TO ASK FOR AND GET WHATEVER YOU WANT

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One of the best ways to improve your odds of getting what you want from anyone is to think about your request before you actually make it.

The big reason many people fail to get what they want is that they are too afraid to ask or they view their requests as all-or-nothing gambits - instead of a series of negotiations and compromises.

But there is a middle ground. Here are strategies to help you begin the "asking" process and avoid becoming angry if things don't go exactly as planned.

STEPS TO SUCCESS

TELL YOURSELF THERE IS NOTHING TO FEAR except fear itself. Fear of punishment or rejection is why most people hesitate to ask for what they want. They are afraid that going out on an emotional limb will result in humiliation if they fail.

Strategy: Before making your request, take plenty of time to remind yourself of the importance of what you are asking for. Tell yourself the only thing that matters is whether or not you are making good and well-articulated points.

By focusing on the merits of your request - not on how you will appear to others - many of your initial fears will fade away.

Before you try to sell others, sell yourself. Two of the most important elements involved in asking for what you want - and getting it - are self-confidence and determination.

Unless you believe in your heart that you will eventually win over the other side, you will likely falter or become upset at the first sign of resistance. An extreme emotional reaction to any hurdle will almost certainly doom your mission, causing the other side to take you and your points less seriously.

Tell yourself from the outset that you may not get what you want immediately. The statement is not the same as saying that you will never succeed, which could hurt your morale and determination.

Instead, you are merely facing reality - accepting the fact that you may face a setback. By acknowledging this possibility, you will not be surprised or upset if you are turned down.

ORGANIZE YOUR THOUGHTS. You can't expect to get results you want if the other side doesn't understand your request.

Strategy: Write out exactly what you want. Then redraft your points until your reasoning is clear, ordered and can be easily related. Practice in front of a mirror, or discuss the points with friends to be sure they make sense and you didn't leave anything out.

When you ask, ask from your heart. Important requests are always better received when those making them are passionate, friendly, polite and firm. Such a stance is difficult to resist. It increases you odds of success...or at least minimizes the chance that your personality or attitude will sabotage your request.

Ask in an enthusiastic manner and voice. Maintain steady eye contact to show that you mean business but also exhibit respect and admiration for the person to whom you are speaking. In general, you stand a much better chance of getting what you want when you make people feel at ease and show them that you are truly excited about what you are requesting.

Prepare to deal with resistance. Even if you do everything right, you might still meet resistance.

The person you are asking might want to confer with someone else before he/she makes final decision ... or he may want to table his answer, hoping that you'll retreat from your position once you have had some time to think about it ... or he might just say no. If someone resists on challenges your request, be polite and gracious. Do not lose your temper or become discouraged. Instead of seeing the other person's resistance as a dead end, view it as part of a continuing conversation. Translate every no into a next. Realize a no doesn't mean stop ... it simply means not yet.

LEARN THE ART OF SAYING THANK YOU. Whether or not you get what you want, say thank you. Gratitude will leave the other person open to giving you what you want - or more of what you want - sometime in the future.

Strategy: Say thank you directly to the person - and follow up with a written note. In some cases, flowers or a gift may be appropriate.

Learning the art of expressing gratitude will force you to focus on the positive. It will also keep you from holding a grudge, which is difficult to hide and only works against you in the long run.

Rudyard Kipling was a British poet whose writings have blessed many people. He was a very famous writer even before he died, and made a great deal of money at his trade.

A newspaper reporter came up to him once and said, "Mr. Kipling, I just read that somebody calculated that the money you make from your writings amounts to over $100 a word." Mr. Kipling raised his eyebrows and said, "Really, I certainly wasn't aware of that." The reporter cynically reached into his pocket and pulled out a $100 bill and gave it to Kipling and said, "Here's a $100 bill Mr. Kipling. Now you give me one of your $100 words."

Rudyard Kipling looked at that $100 bill for a moment, took it and folded it up and put it in his pocket and said, "Thanks."

Thankfulness/Gratitude

THINGS I'M THANKFUL FOR "....the mess to clean after a party because it

means I have been surrounded by friends.

....the taxes I pay because it means that I'm employed.

....the clothes that fit a little too snug because it means I have enough to

eat.

....my shadow who watches me work because it means I am out in the sunshine.

....a lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning and gutters that need

fixing because it means I have a home.

....the spot I find at the far end of the parking lot because it means I am

capable of walking.

....all the complaining I hear about our government because it means we have

freedom of speech.

....my huge heating bill because it means I am warm.

...the lady behind me in church who sings off key because it means that I can

hear.

....the piles of laundry and ironing because it means my loved ones are nearby.

....weariness and aching muscles at the end of the day because it means I have

been productive.

....the alarm that goes off in the early morning hours because it means that I'm

alive.

....the Old Rugged Cross because it means my faith is in Jesus Christ.

When I was younger, I remember receiving the inevitable homework assignment to write an essay on “something I am thankful for”. Then I’d spend a lot of time sitting in my room trying to figure out just what in the world that could possibly be; and I’d end up writing down everything I could think of from God to environmental consciousness. But after having children, my priorities have clearly changed:

Before children: I was thankful to have been born in the USA, the most powerful free democracy in the world.

After Children: I am thankful for Velcro tennis shoes. As well as saving valuable time, now I can hear the sound of my son taking off his shoes — which gives me three extra seconds to activate the safety locks on the back seat windows right before he hurls them out of the car and onto the freeway.

Before children: I was thankful for the recycling program which will preserve our natural resources and prevent the overloading of landfills.

After children: I am thankful for swim diapers because every time my son wanders into water in plain disposables, he ends up wearing a blimp the size of, say, New Jersey, on his bottom.

Before children: I was thankful for fresh, organic vegetables.

After children: I am thankful for microwaveable macaroni and cheese — without which my children would be surviving on about three bites of cereal and their own spit.

Before children: I was thankful for the opportunity to obtain a college education and have a higher quality of life than my ancestors.

After children: I am thankful to finish a complete thought without being interrupted.

Before children: I was thankful for holistic medicine and natural herbs.

After children: I am thankful for pediatric cough syrup guaranteed to “cause drowsiness” in young children.

Before children: I was thankful for all of the teachers who had taught, encouraged and nurtured me throughout my formative years.

After children: I am thankful for all of the people at Weight Watchers who let me strip down to pantyhose and a strategically placed scarf before getting on the scale each week.

Before children: I was thankful for the opportunity to vacation in exotic foreign countries so I could experience a different way of life in a new culture.

After children: I am thankful to have time to make it all the way down the driveway to get the mail.

Before children: I was thankful for the Moosewood Vegetarian cookbook.

After children: I am thankful for the butterball turkey hotline.

Before children: I was thankful for a warm, cozy home to share with my loved ones.

After children: I am thankful for the lock on the bathroom door.

Before children: I was thankful for material objects like custom furniture, a nice car and trendy clothes.

After children: I am thankful when the baby spits up and misses my good shoes.

Before children: I was thankful for my wonderful family.

After children: I am thankful for my wonderful family.

In 1914 Thomas Edison’s laboratory caught on fire. When he realized how big the blaze was, Edison sent word to his family and friends, “Get down here quick. You may never again see anything like this!”

Edison lost 2 million dollars in equipment and the record of a life’s work. Walking through the rubble with his son Charles, he said, “There’s a great value in disaster. All our mistakes are burned up. Thank God we can start anew.”

How many would be able to respond with gratitude after such loss? Giving thanks to God, Edison started anew. Many great inventions came after his laboratory burned.

How can we reap the benefits of a thankful heart all year long?

• Planting seeds of gratitude.

We each face a decision about what to plant in our heart. “We can decide to be grateful or to be bitter” (theologian Henri Nouwen). The wise man chooses to plant seeds of gratitude: “In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Being thankful is something all Christians are responsible to do.

We can’t command our feelings, but we can command our will. We can determine to say “thank You, Lord” even when we don’t feel like it. And, our emotions will follow our actions.

• Cultivating a thankful heart.

When you plant seeds of thanksgiving in your heart, the water of God’s Word will keep them alive. So, “give thanks always for all things to God the Father” (Ephesians 5:20) and “enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise” (Psalm 100:4). Whenever we come before God, we are always to come with a grateful heart.

Cultivate an attitude of gratitude. Think about the things God has done for you. List the blessings of God in your life. Then, imagine if each thing were taken away from you. What would your life be like? Now mentally put each person and thing back on your list and be thankful.

• Blossom gratitude.

No matter what our circumstance, we can find a reason to be thankful. You may find yourself in a terrible family or work situation. Give thanks in the midst of your problems.

Choose to be thankful wherever you are -- even a lion’s den. Offer the sacrifice of thanksgiving and call upon the name of the Lord (Psalm 116:17). Pray and sing. Say thank-you to God in prayer. Tell others of His goodness. Serve God with a cheerful heart and thankful attitude.

• The fruit of thanksgiving.

Show me a person who is thankful, and I’ll show you a person who can endure the most difficult situation in life and still find joy. Who is the greatest saint in the world? The one who is always thankful to God, who receives everything as an expression of God’s goodness, and has a heart ready to praise God for everything he gets. That is a saint (author William Law).

Paul writes that we’re to speak to each other in “psalms and hymns and spiritual songs...giving thanks always” (Ephesians 5:19-20). A spirit of gratitude not only enhances our relationship with our heavenly Father, it improves the way we relate and talk to one another.

Someone asked a farmer famous for raising a superior strain of wheat why he let his competitors benefit from his research. “Aren’t you afraid their wheat will be as good as yours?” The farmer replied that when his neighbors grew proper grain and their grain pollinated his crops, he reaped the benefits. Thanksgiving works that way. When we give it freely to God or to others, we always have a residual benefit that comes back to us.

• Sowing and reaping.

The Bible says clearly says your reap what you sow. If you plant seeds of gratitude, you can expect an abundant harvest of God’s blessings. The opposite is also true. Ingratitude has no friends.

Don’t allow an ungrateful spirit to rob you of life’s richness. Thank God daily for who He is, and what He has done for you. Let this attitude of gratitude grow strong, not only at Thanksgiving, but throughout the year.

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[Original illustration at this number was a duplicate of HolwickID #20326]

If you will allow me to play for a moment an Indian Regis Philbin, host, of course, of "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?," may I ask you: how do you spell relief for loneliness? Is the answer A) Falling in love, B) Finding good friends, C) Self-sacrifice, or D) Worship? If you have joined us for our series on loneliness, I trust that you could provide the correct answer to my humorously-posed question. The answer is D) Worship. Yesterday, we considered worship in terms of gratitude, and today we will conclude with two further ways in which worship counters the ache of loneliness.

We have learned that Appreciative love leads to worship that is alive with awe and wonder. It then goes beyond itself and gives to others. This is important, because the countering effect of worship on one's loneliness does not stop with the self; it in turn reaches out to others in their struggles. How is this accomplished? Put simply, God pours His love into our lives, and out of the overflow of that love or that deposit he makes in us, we have the means to love others-an account to draw from, if you will, to lavish on others.

In a world of hate and suspicion, what a distinctive role the worshipper can play! This is the only way in which alienation is arrested and the nearness of Christ's love made real to so many who are hurting. Sadly, the hatred that is demonstrated in our world has been the inevitable outcome of a people who know no Appreciative Love toward the very author of life.

Finally, worship not only flows out of gratitude to God and spreads the love of God in a hostile world, it also binds the worshipping life into a single focus, touching upon every sense of life itself. Many in our fragmented world feel the ache of loneliness because the "sword of Solomon" has done its work in their hearts, cutting them up. This inevitably brings alienation and a sense of desolation. In contrast, worship coalesces who we are, taking all of our aims, desires, and capacities, and tying them into one unified expression of praise to our Maker.

In conclusion, Appreciative Love, or worship, flows out of gratitude to God, spreads the love of God to a hostile world, and binds the worshipping life into a single focus. It is the only answer to loneliness, and yes, that is my final answer. May it be yours as well.

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Copyright © 2002 Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). Reprinted with permission. "A Slice of Infinity" is a radio ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.

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Thanksgiving is probably the most significant American holiday because of the favor it has experienced from some of our greatest leaders. And the Thanksgiving tradition serves as a valuable history lesson for civil libertarians who carelessly attempt to ignore our nation's prominent religious heritage that should not be swept under the proverbial rug.

The Thanksgiving tradition can be traced back to the early Pilgrims who held a feast in 1621 after a substantial harvest. Governor William Bradford proclaimed a day of thanksgiving, inviting Indian chief Massasoit and many of his people to this three-day feast. Squanto, the Pilgrim's translator and friend, was present as well. While this banquet would not become an annual event, it beautifully signified the heartfelt thanks of the early colonists for God's blessing on them.

On June 20, 1676, the governing council of Charlestown, Massachusetts, determined that they would officially express thanks for their prosperity. By unanimous vote, they instructed clerk Edward Rawson to proclaim June 29 as a day of thanksgiving.

That proclamation read, in part: “... and that the Lord may behold us as a People offering Praise and thereby glorifying him; the Council doth commend it to the Respective Ministers, Elders and people of this Jurisdiction; Solemnly and seriously to keep the same Beseeching that being persuaded by the mercies of God we may all, even this whole people offer up our bodies as a living and acceptable Service unto God by Jesus Christ.”

It was not, however, until Nov. 1, 1777, that the first official national recognition of Thanksgiving was given, when declared by the Continental Congress following Burgoyne's defeat at Saratoga. The defeat of Burgoyne and his army came following a grueling campaign that began with the British victory at Ticonderoga, and our leaders desired to express thanks to God for the victory.

Throughout the 1700s, it was common practice for the colonies to observe days of thanksgiving throughout the years. Then, on Oct. 3, 1789, George Washington, during his first year as president, set aside Thursday, November 26, as “A Day of Public Thanksgiving and Prayer.” This official decree by the young national government determined that the day should “be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God.”

No early variety of the American Civil Liberties Union arrived on the scene that day to protest Washington's action with a lawsuit. No primitive version of Barry Lynn [of Americans United for Separation of Church and State] was there to claim that a government endorsement of a day of Thanksgiving might “offend” somebody. Instead, the nation enthusiastically welcomed this proclamation with grateful hearts.

On Oct. 3, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation distinguishing the fourth Tuesday of November as a national Thanksgiving holiday. President Lincoln also declared days of Thanksgiving for Sunday, April 13 -- following the Union victory at Shiloh -- and Aug. 6, 1863, in recognition of the Union's success at Gettysburg.

Mr. Lincoln's October 1863 Thanksgiving proclamation read, in part: “No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.”

What eloquent and provocative words these are.

President Andrew Johnson set aside a special Thanksgiving on Dec. 7, 1865 (celebrating the Union victory), and each president since that time has declared an annual national Thanksgiving. In 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt changed the holiday to the third Thursday of November (to broaden the Christmas shopping season), but after much protest, two years later changed Thanksgiving to the fourth Thursday in November, where it remains today.

As you can see, Thanksgiving holds a special place in the history of our nation. Our Founders were men who were not afraid to boldly declare thanks to Almighty God for honoring the nation.

The words of Benjamin Franklin, speaking to the Constitutional Convention, on June 28, 1787, brilliantly express the sentiment of our Founding Fathers: “I have lived, sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth -- that God Governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid?”

This Thanksgiving, I encourage all parents and grandparents to remind their families of the great Judeo-Christian heritage of America. It is up to us to keep alive the legacy of religious freedom and passion that sparked this nation. May the words of Irving Berlin's “God Bless America” (1938) remain our constant theme as we battle to preserve the Judeo-Christian heritage of our dear nation.

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Falwell is pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church, Lynchburg, Va., and chancellor of Liberty University.

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I’ve never made a fortune and it’s probably too late now

But I don’t worry about that much I’m happy anyhow

And as I go along life’s way I’m reaping better than I sow

I’m drinking from my saucer ‘Cause my cup has overflowed .

Haven’t got a lot of riches and sometimes the going’s tough

But I’ve got loving ones around me and that makes me rich enough

I thank God for his blessings and the mercies He’s bestowed

I’m drinking from my saucer ‘cause my cup has overflowed.

O, Remember times when things went wrong My faith wore somewhat thin

But all at once the dark clouds broke and sun peeped through again

So Lord, help me not to gripe about the tough rows that I’ve hoed

I’m drinking from my saucer ‘Cause my cup has overflowed.

If God gives me strength and courage When the way grows steep and rough

I’ll not ask for other blessings I’m already blessed enough

And may I never be too busy to help others bear their loads

Then I’ll keep drinking from my saucer ‘Cause my cup has overflowed.

I love the Bible search engines available for most computers. I have them on my Windows machines, I have them on my Macs, I even have them on my PDA’s. Every once in a while, I like to just put in a phrase and see what rolls out. Since Thanksgiving in the U.S. is approaching, I thought I would do a thanksgiving search — not about the holiday, but about the attitude, the lifestyle, of thanksgiving. So I checked out the phrase “with thanksgiving” and this is what rolled out:

• I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving. — Psalm 69:30

• Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song. — Psalm 95:2

• Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. — Psalm 100:4

• Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving; make music to our God on the harp. — Psalm 147:7

• Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. — Philippians 4:6

• They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth. For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving… — 1 Timothy 4:3-4

As I examined these “random” passages, they taught me several powerful lessons.

First, when we talk about going into the presence of the Holy, Almighty God, we go with thanksgiving. We don’t go with fear, regret, dread, sorrow, anguish, but with thanksgiving. Now don’t get me wrong, we approach God with a deep and reverential awe. We also go with the things that are on our hearts, small and large, good and bad. We approach him out of the place we find ourselves in our lives and he meets us there. But, for God, the key to our approach is thanksgiving and praise. No matter where we are in our walk through the world, we know our destination, we know our victory lies ahead around God’s corner, and we know that God’s grace has triumphed over our doubts and defeats. So when we approach God — whether in prayer, song, or meal — we go with thanksgiving!

Second, thanksgiving before God is not just about things we consider “normal worship,” like prayer and song, but it also involves our food. We remember Jesus’ example when he broke bread and blessed it (cf. Matthew 15:36). We know the disciples on the road to Emmaus recognized Jesus as they ate together with him (see Luke 24:35). In fact, if you listen closely to Luke’s story of Jesus and the Early Church (in Luke and Acts), you can tell his story around the meals that are mentioned. Eating food with thanksgiving along with those that love us and that love Jesus is very much a part of worshiping God (Acts 2:46). Maybe that is why one of the words for the Supper of the Lord is The Thanksgiving (eucharisteow from which the word Eucharist comes — Luke 22:17, 19).

Third, a crucial part of a life that is triumphant over difficult circumstances is the ability to give thanks to God. This thanksgiving, offered even in the middle of difficulty and hardship, helps ransom our situation with the promises and grace of God. As Paul put it, “if God is for us, who can be against us?” (cf. Romans 8:31) Approaching God with thanksgiving in our songs, our prayers, and our meals helps us rise above the mundane and catch a glimpse of the glory our God longs to share with us.

So, whether you’re from the U.S. or not, why not take this week and dedicate it to giving thanks. Heaven will be a little closer, the hardships of this world will be a little more bearable, and the Father who waits to bring you home will definitely be near, enjoying it even more than us!

Author George MacDonald's definition of the “careless soul” is a definition we would do well to investigate. It is a careless soul, he explained, who receives good things as if they simply had a way of dropping into his hands, yet ever complaining, holds someone accountable for the setbacks he meets along the way. Writes MacDonald, “For the good that comes to him, he gives no thanks - who is there to thank? At the disappointments that befall him he grumbles - there must be someone to blame!”[1]

Think about this. Whether an atheist denying the existence of God, or a Christian overlooking the blessings of God, the contradiction is as obvious as it is rampant among us, even as it is unabashedly ignored. To overlook the good in our lives is to state that there is no one to thank. To grumble is to emphatically declare that there is someone to hold responsible. So which will it be?

It is interesting that we teach our children to be thankful and not to complain, or overlook the many things we are blessed with. Could it be that we know intuitively what we were created for intrinsically? To be thankful is to recognize that the blessing is bigger than me, that there is something or someone working beyond me. Isn't the one who is thankful for the tree's shade, also thankful for the one who planted it? What of the One who made it? The countless hints of kindness that surround us in moments of beauty, provision, and order are rumors which tell us that we are not alone, that we are not orphans or nomads roaming the earth.

A grateful heart is widened to wonder as it follows the sunbeam up to the sun. It is possible, with practice, to see only the sunbeam and not the sun. But a thankful heart, reminds Tozer, has no room for cynicism-there is, in all things, Someone greater to thank.

Billy Graham tells the story of theologian Matthew Henry who at an old age was mugged on the street. That night he wrote in his diary, “Let me be thankful first because I was never robbed before; second, although they took my purse, they did not take my life; third, because although they took my all, it was not much; and fourth, because it was I who was robbed, not I who robbed.” I wonder what I would have written in my diary. What might you have penned in yours?

Hear the commanding and yet inviting words of Psalm 103: “Praise the Lord O my soul, and forget not all his benefits! Who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.”

Throughout the psalms we are reminded to give thanks to God, to praise the Lord. Here the psalmist reminds us to remind ourselves why. Remember again and again the things He has done. Forget not all His benefits. Speak of His kindness, speak of His provision, and remember the moments when He has mightily touched your life with redemption and mercy. Even Jesus rolling away the stone of Lazarus' tomb gave thanks to God for the miracle He would perform in the motionless heart of Lazarus, in the hearts of those watching. To be thankful is to keep our eyes, and hearts, and minds upon the Giver of Life.

Let us not be careless with our words, with our memories, with our visions of God at work among us. He has crowned us with much, let us be careful to crown Him Lord.

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1. George MacDonald, An Anthology (San Francisco: Harper, 1946), p. 84.

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Copyright © 2003 Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). Reprinted with permission. "A Slice of Infinity" is a radio ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.

IF …

If you can read this message, you are more blessed than over two billion people in the world that cannot read at all.

If you woke up this morning with more health than illness… you are more blessed than the one million who will not survive this week.

If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation… you are ahead of 500 million people in the world today.

If you can attend a church meeting without fear of harassment, arrest, torture, or death… you are more blessed than three billion people on this earth.

If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep… you are richer than 75% of the world's population.

If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish someplace… you are among the top 8% of the world’s wealthy.

If you hold up your head with a smile on your face and are truly thankful… you are blessed because the majority can, but most do not.

If you can hold someone’s hand, hug them or even touch them on the shoulder… you are blessed because you can offer a healing touch.

The late Dr. Fulton Oursler used to tell of an old woman who took care of him when he was a child. Anna was a former slave who, after emancipation, was hired by the family for many years.

He remembered her sitting at the kitchen table, her hands folded and her eyes gazing upward as she prayed, “Much obliged, Lord, for my vittles.” He asked her what vittles were and she replied that they were food and drink. He told her that she would get food and drink whether or not she gave thanks, and Anna said, “Yes, we'll get our vittles, but it makes 'em taste better when we're thankful.”

She told him that an old preacher taught her, as a little girl, to always look for things to be grateful for. So, as soon as she awoke each morning, she asked herself, “What is the first thing I can be grateful for today?” Sometimes the smell of early-morning coffee perking in the kitchen found its way to her room. On those mornings, the aroma prompted her to say, “Much obliged, Lord, for the coffee. And much obliged, too, for the smell of it!”

Young Fulton grew up and left home. One day he received a message that Anna was dying. He returned home and found her in bed with her hands folded over her white sheets, just as he had seen them folded in prayer over her white apron at the kitchen table so many times before.

He wondered what she could give thanks for at a time like this. As if reading his mind, she opened her eyes and gazed at the loving faces around her bed. Then, shutting her eyes again, she said quietly, “Much obliged, Lord, for such fine friends.”

Oursler was deeply influenced by Anna's uncanny ability to always find something to be thankful for. This wise woman taught him a vital secret that many people have never learned: she taught him how to be happy.

From One Minute Can Change a Life, by Steve Goodier, Life Support System Pub Inc, November 1, 1999, ISBN 1929664001, http://isbn.nu/1929664001

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Life Support System, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/lifesupport/

“Pay every debt as if God wrote the bill,” goes the counsel of Ralph Waldo Emerson. I want to think about this for a moment. Do you feel pressure to reciprocate when someone treats you to lunch? Do you find yourself repaying kindness for kindness, compliment for compliment, and so on? You are far from alone if you do. According to sociologists today, this sense of obligation, which they refer to as the “Rule of Reciprocation,” is present in every single known human society. And the Rule of Reciprocation is as powerful as it is prevalent. Listen to the pointed remark of one psychologist: “So typical is it for indebtedness to accompany the receipt of [favors, gifts, and the like] that a phrase like 'much obliged' has become a synonym for 'thank you.'“ [1]

Perhaps the implications of that etymological statement could unveil our haste in responding to debt. After all, indebtedness is uncomfortable, isn't it? To be rid of it is liberating, whereas, gratitude asks much more of us. Our sense of indebtedness lingers in a state of being thankful.

Now, you can return a favor and still experience gratitude for the favor given you. But you can also return a favor simply to reciprocate, to mindlessly remove that feeling of indebtedness. In fact, one psychology class carried out a revealing experiment on this subject. The professor sent Christmas cards to a large list of strangers to test the Rule of Reciprocation. The response was astounding. Cards came pouring back to him, all from people he had never met, the vast majority never even inquiring into the identity of the unknown sender! They simply received his card, and automatically sent one in return.

What of the sense of obligation in your own life? Are you uncomfortable with indebtedness? I ask because there will be times in life when there is no fitting response to indebtedness. What will happen when you simply can't reciprocate? What happens when you find there is no fitting response to the gift or the giver?

Quite simply, you respond with gratitude. We come into the presence of the giver with thanksgiving and we are changed by the gift. And when the Giver is Christ, freely submitting to death for a debt that was ours, how then do we respond? I believe the old hymn offers much wisdom:

Alas! and did my Savior bleed,

And did my Sovereign die?

Would He devote that sacred head,

For such a worm as I?

Thus might I hide my blushing face,

While His dear cross appears,

Dissolve my heart in thankfulness,

And melt my eyes to tears.

But drops of grief can ne’er repay,

The debt of love I owe:

Here, Lord, I give my self away,

’Tis all that I can do. [2]

Let us this Thanksgiving day find our hearts dissolved in thankfulness as we recall the gift of Christ. For it is gratitude that sees this undeserved gift for which there is no reciprocating and with devotion says, “Here I am, my Lord and my God. I am yours.”

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1. Robert Cialdini, Influence: Science and Practice. (Boston: Allyn & Bacon, 2001), p. 20.

2. Isaac Watts, Alas and Did my Savior Bleed? 1707.

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Copyright © 2003 Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). Reprinted with permission. "A Slice of Infinity" is a radio ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.

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Version from 11/25/04:

“Pay every debt as if God wrote the bill,” goes the counsel of Ralph Waldo Emerson. His advice is worth contemplating. Do you feel pressure to reciprocate when someone treats you to lunch? Do you find yourself repaying kindness for kindness, compliment for compliment, and so on? You are far from alone if you do. According to sociologists today, this sense of obligation, which they refer to as the “Rule of Reciprocation,” is present in every single known human society. And the Rule of Reciprocation is as powerful as it is prevalent. Listen to the pointed remark of one psychologist: “So typical is it for indebtedness to accompany the receipt of [favors, gifts, and the like] that a phrase like 'much obliged' has become a synonym for 'thank you.'“(1)

Perhaps the implications of that etymological statement could unveil our haste in responding to debt. After all, indebtedness is uncomfortable, isn't it? To be rid of it is liberating, whereas, gratitude asks much more of us. Our sense of indebtedness lingers in a state of being thankful.

Now, you can return a favor and still experience gratitude for the favor given you. But you can also return a favor simply to reciprocate, to mindlessly remove that feeling of indebtedness. In fact, one psychology class carried out a revealing experiment on this subject. The professor sent Christmas cards to a large list of complete strangers to test the Rule of Reciprocation. The response was astounding. Cards came pouring back to him, all from people he had never met, the vast majority never even inquiring into the identity of the unknown sender! They simply received his card, and automatically sent one in return.

What about the sense of obligation in your own life? Are you uncomfortable with indebtedness? I ask because there will be times in life when there is no fitting response to indebtedness. What happens when you find there is no fitting response to the gift or the giver? What will happen when you simply can't reciprocate?

Quite simply, you respond with gratitude. We come into the presence of the giver with thanksgiving and we are changed by the gift. And when the giver is Christ, freely submitting to death for a debt that was not his own but ours, how then do we respond? I believe the old hymn offers much wisdom:

Alas! and did my Savior bleed,

And did my Sovereign die?

Would He devote that sacred head,

For such a worm as I?

Thus might I hide my blushing face,

While His dear cross appears,

Dissolve my heart in thankfulness,

And melt my eyes to tears.

But drops of grief can ne’er repay,

The debt of love I owe:

Here, Lord, I give my self away,

’Tis all that I can do.

Let us this day find our hearts dissolved in thankfulness as we recall the undeserved gift of Christ. For it is gratitude that sees this sacred debt for which there is no reciprocating and with devotion says, “Here I am, my Lord and my God. I am yours.”

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1. Robert Cialdini, Influence: Science and Practice. (Boston: Allyn & Bacon, 2001), 20.

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Copyright © 2004 Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). Reprinted with permission. "A Slice of Infinity" is a radio ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.

Pastor Victor Shepherd tells the story of a missionary surgeon he met who was rather gruff and to the point. On one occasion the surgeon was speaking to a small group of university students about his work in the Gaza Strip. He was telling us that we North American “fat cats” knew nothing about gratitude. Nothing! On one occasion he had stopped a peasant hovel to see a woman on whom he had performed surgery. She and her husband were dirt poor. Their livestock supply consisted of one angora rabbit and two chickens. For income the woman combed the hair out of the rabbit, spun the hair into yarn and sold it. For food she and her husband ate the eggs from the chickens. The woman insisted that the missionary surgeon stay for lunch. He accepted the invitation and said he would be back for lunch after he had gone down the road to see another postoperative patient. An hour and a half later he was back. He peeked into the cooking pot to see what he was going to eat. He saw one rabbit and two chickens. The woman had given up her entire livestock supply -- her income, her food, everything. He concluded his story by reminding us that we knew nothing of gratitude. He wept unashamedly. The incident will stay with me forever.

There is another incident concerning gratitude that will never be forgotten. It's about a woman who poured costly perfume over our Lord as she wiped his feet with her hair. Make no mistake -- the perfume was expensive, three hundred denarii, a year's income for a laborer in Palestine. Enough to keep a family alive for twelve months.

Luke 17:1–19 — Actions, Faith, Gratitude — « Leader information shown in this fashion »

A. Actions, Luke 17:1–4 (NKJV): 1 Then He said to the disciples, “It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! 2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones. 3 Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. 4 And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.”

1. the word offences in verse 1 is skandala, from which we get the English word, scandal; what is the dangerous effect of these?

a. « that they may tempt others to sin, lead them astray »

b. « that they may hinder spiritual growth, be a stumblingstone »

2. what is the situation of the one causing such skandala?

a. « the woe indicates they are in a sorry, sad, pitiable state »

b. « death now, even a rather grisly death, to prevent such an offence is better than the punishment such offence brings »

3. who do you think the “little ones” of verse 2 could be?

a. Matthew 18:1–6, Mark 9:42 « — may be a parallel passage; it at least reflects the same teaching; there it refers to little children »

b. Mark 10:24, Luke 10:21 « — however use the term children for any believer; elsewhere it is used for new believers »

4. verses 3–4: in opposition to bringing about sin, what are to be the responses of the believer?

a. « admonish the one who sins »

b. « forgive the repentant sinner »

c. Matthew 18:21–22; what is the limit to doing this? « – there is no limit, either seven per day or 490 times, but rather until the action of forgiveness has borne the desired fruit, a turning of the offender away from sin. »

5. how does this response tie in with

a. Matthew 18:15–17 « – there is a progression of such correction »

b. 2 Corinthians 7:8–11 « – there is an encouragement to be given to those who respond positively to such correction »

c. Luke 6:36–42 « – before you go admonishing others about sin, ensure your own life is cleansed »

B. Faith, Luke 17:5–10 (NKJV); 5 And the apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” 6 So the Lord said, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you. 7 And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? 8 But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink’? 9 Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not. 10 So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’”

1. verse 5; what is the disciples request?

a. « for increased faith »

b. how does this tie into the preceding verses? « – obedience and faith are closely linked; obedience is a mark of faith – but to obey repeatedly, and without any dividend, is to require a solid trust in the Lord and His wisdom »

2. verse 6; what is Jesus’ response to that request?

a. only « a relatively small amount of faith is needed in order to accomplish great things under the power of God; turns the thought to the genuineness of the faith rather than amount »

b. the mustard seed is « – a fairly small seed; used several times by the Lord Jesus to represent a small amount of faith »

c. [fig-]mulberry or sycamore (actually”sycaminos”) tree « – this is believed to be a very firmly rooted tree; the rabbis held that the roots of the black mulberry would remain in the earth for 600 years. »

d. is Jesus suggesting that this is a legitimate use of faith? « – no! Miller: “genuine faith can accomplish what experience, reason, and probability would deny, if it is exercised within God’s will” (Leon Morris, Luke, Tyndale NT Commentaries) »

3. verses 7–10; what are the principles in the given example?

a. « the master’s priorities come before the servants »

b. « obedience is merely doing one’s duty »

c. Luke 12:37, 22:27; how does our Master compare with the master in these verses? « – He does serve us! »

d. Matthew 5:48 tells us we are to be P « erfect » _________ as our Father in heaven in P « erfect » _______; so it is not surprising that our best does not bring gain to God (1 Corinthians 9:16)

4. what do you conclude about faith from these verses? « – the power of faith is not for our own aggrandizement but simply for the service of the Lord »

C. Gratitude, Luke 17:11–19 (NKJV): 11 Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. 12 Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off. 13 And they lifted up their voices and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” 14 So when He saw them, He said to them, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed. 15 And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, 16 and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan. 17 So Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? 18 Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” 19 And He said to him, “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.” «

1. this takes place in the last few weeks of Jesus’ life; after the raising of Lazarus, Jesus headed north to the town of Ephraim (John 11:54); now He seems to have journeyed further north to join the Galilean pilgrims travelling to the Passover »

2. what did all ten lepers demonstrate …

a. … in verses 12–13? « – their belief that Jesus was in a position

(A) to show mercy to them

(B) to heal them

b. in the secular, the Greek word for master is used of a king, a ship’s commander, a military officer; in the NT of Jesus as the authoritative teacher »

c. … in verse 14? « – their obedience to the command of Jesus »

(A) which took place when? « – before their healing became evident »

(B) why did Jesus command this? « Leviticus 14:2ff … while unclean they must stay outside of habitations (see verse 12) and before re-entering must pass inspection by the priest »

3. what especially marks the one (former) leper …

a. … in verse 15? « – glorified God as soon as he saw his healing »

b. … in verse 16a? « – he bowed to Jesus in gratitude »

c. … in verses 16b, 18? « – he wasn’t even one of the orthodox (doctrinally correct) Jews but a foreigner, a Samaritan – the misery of leprosy wound up with Jews having sympathy for the hated Samaritan who is likewise suffering »

d. … in verse 19? « – he had faith that brought him salvation (the word to heal and to save, deliver or preserve are the same) »

4. what do you conclude concerning faith from this? « – trust in God will be accompanied by the giving of glory and thanks to Him; genuine faith will bring salvation »

“Be thankful for what you have.”

I imagine my parents said that to me at least 1,000 times when I was a kid, usually in response to a lament that I didn't have something I really wanted.

Like many parents, mine worked hard to make sure my needs -- and wants -- were met to the extent possible and appropriate.

But others had it better than me. Occasionally I'd point this out and provoke my parents' predictable response: “Be thankful for what you have.”

Maybe you're like me. Maybe you still struggle with this matter of thankfulness.

We're all that way. Yes, we know our job provides for the family, but shouldn't it be better? Sure, we're glad we've got a roof over our head, but isn't that house across town a lot nicer?

Certainly we concede our circumstances could be worse, but why doesn't God permit them to be more in line with what we want?

Often when the Bible speaks of prayer, it reminds us to pray with a spirit of thankfulness. The Apostle Paul reminded the Philippians to make their requests known to God, but from a heart of sincere appreciation, not selfish demand: “... But in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God” (Philippians 4:6). In other words, Paul said: “Be thankful for what you have.”

This battle with contentment rages most fiercely when our focus is on the temporal rather than the eternal. Jesus told His disciples, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33).

We spend much of life chasing after “all these things” when we're focused on self and stuff and situations rather than what matters for eternity.

I have to confess, though, that my parents' reminder didn't always sit well.

“How trite,” I often thought. It was then that they sometimes took a few minutes to remind me what I had to be thankful for.

God's Word does the same for us. Colossians 1:12-14 is an amazing recital of a Christian's motive for thanksgiving.

It tells us first of all to give thanks because God “... has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light” (v. 12). God has qualified us for heaven.

If you watched the Olympics, you noticed that athletes have no hope to win a gold medal unless they first qualify for the final competition.

The Bible says that not a single person is good enough to qualify for eternal life. But in His grace, God has qualified us! He sent His son, Jesus, to die on the cross for our sins.

Anyone who trusts in Jesus alone for forgiveness of sin and eternal life is qualified for heaven.

But there's more!

“For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves ...” (Colossians 1:13). In ancient times, when one kingdom conquered another, it often would take the defeated people and place them in the kingdom of the victors. Slavery and death awaited the conquered people.

God has done the opposite for us. Christians are those who have been plucked out of the kingdom of sin and death and placed in the kingdom of God.

Before we accepted Christ as our Lord and Savior, we were slaves to sin. Praise God we have been set free.

I read recently that in the Civil War days, when Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, many slaves in the South went right on living as if they had not been set free. Imagine the tragedy of freed slaves living as if still captives.

The Bible says Christians have been emancipated, that we've been set free from the bondage of sin. How tragic that we sometimes live as if we're still captives.

The highest price imaginable was paid for our freedom: Jesus' death on the cross.

Finally, the Apostle Paul reminded the Colossians to give thanks because in Christ, “... we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins” (v. 14).

Speaking of President Lincoln, after the war he was asked how the Union should treat some of the rebellious Southerners.

Lincoln said, “I shall treat them as if they had never been away.”

How incredible that God extends to us something we could not possibly earn: forgiveness of sin.

Through Christ's death on the cross, God redeems us. He regards those who were once separated from Him by sin as if they had never been away.

Do we sometimes wish for more in life? Is our focus on self and stuff and situations?

Let's pick up our Bibles and consider what our heavenly Father tells us.

“Be thankful for what you have!”

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Steve Massey is pastor of Haden Bible Church in Haden, Idaho.

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”The Lord hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad.” — Psalm 126:3

Some Christians are sadly prone to look on the dark side of everything, and to dwell more upon what they have gone through than upon what God has done for them. Ask for their impression of the Christian life, and they will describe their continual conflicts, their deep afflictions, their sad adversities, and the sinfulness of their hearts, yet with scarcely any allusion to the mercy and help which God has vouchsafed them. But a Christian whose soul is in a healthy state, will come forward joyously, and say, “I will speak, not about myself, but to the honour of my God. He hath brought me up out of a horrible pit, and out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings: and he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God. The Lord hath done great things for me, whereof I am glad.” Such an abstract of experience as this is the very best that any child of God can present.

It is true that we endure trials, but it is just as true that we are delivered out of them. It is true that we have our corruptions, and mournfully do we know this, but it is quite as true that we have an all sufficient Saviour, who overcomes these corruptions, and delivers us from their dominion.

In looking back, it would be wrong to deny that we have been in the Slough of Despond, and have crept along the Valley of Humiliation, but it would be equally wicked to forget that we have been through them safely and profitably; we have not remained in them, thanks to our Almighty Helper and Leader, who has brought us “out into a wealthy place.” The deeper our troubles, the louder our thanks to God, who has led us through all, and preserved us until now. Our griefs cannot mar the melody of our praise, we reckon them to be the bass part of our life’s song, “He hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad.”

Junior Stowers raised his hands and exclaimed, “Thank you, Jesus!” in court when he was acquitted by a jury. But his joy was short-lived when Judge Patrick Border held him in contempt of court for the “outburst” and threw him in jail.

Stowers, 47, sat in the courtroom and a cellblock for about six hours until the judge granted him a hearing on the contempt charge and released him. The judge at a later hearing dropped the contempt charge, a petty misdemeanor that carries up to 30 days in jail. Court minutes said Border had realized Stowers' trial lawyer did not have time to tell Stowers the judge had ordered both sides not to show emotion when the verdict was announced.

His attorney in the contempt case, Deputy Public Defender Susan Arnett, said Stowers wasn't treated fairly. “I don't think there's anything about saying 'Thank you, Jesus' that rises to the level of contemptuous behavior in this case,” she told The Honolulu Advertiser.

James A. Michener was once invited by President Eisenhower to a dinner at the White House. He wrote a letter to Eisenhower explaining why he couldn't accept.

“I received your invitation three days after I had agreed to speak a few words at a dinner honoring the wonderful high school teacher who taught me how to write. I know you will not miss me at your dinner, but she might at hers. In his lifetime, a man lives under fifteen or sixteen presidents, but a really fine teacher comes into his life but rarely.”

Eisenhower wrote back to say that he understood.

Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. — PSALM 100:4.

The shortest, surest way to all happiness is this: Make it a rule to thank and praise God for everything that happens to you, for it is certain that, whatever seeming calamity comes to you, if you thank and praise God for it, you turn it into a blessing. Could you therefore work miracles, you could not do more for yourself than by this thankful spirit, for it needs not a word spoken and turns all that it touches into happiness. Do you thank God for the unpleasant things as well as the pleasant things which come your way? Complaining will drag you down into the darkness of despondency; praise will lift you into the glorious light of God’s presence. Don’t smile weakly and say, “I’m not doing too badly under the circumstances,” when praise can lift you above the circumstances!

Praise shall employ these tongues of ours,

Till we with all the saints above,

Extol His name with nobler powers,

And see the ocean of His love;

Then, while we look, and wondering gaze,

We’ll fill the heavens with endless praise.

He died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again. — 2 Corinthians 5:15.

I read of a girl who had gone to New York to look for work. She secured a position as a maid in a fine home. Her employer was a kind, generous woman; she even went so far as to secure voice lessons for the girl. After a time the girl was given an opportunity to sing over radio before a vast studio audience and she sang beautifully. The audience was enthusiastic and applauded for a long time. When the announcer asked the girl about her ambition and plans for the future, everyone expected her to say that she would seek a career in the musical world. But, to the astonishment of all who listened, the singer exclaimed, “Oh the woman who gave me the voice lessons — I’d like to work for her all the rest of my life!”

O Thou who died on Calvary,

To save my soul, and make me free;

I’d consecrate my life to Thee,

My Saviour and my God.

Be thankful unto him, and bless his name. — Psalm 100:4.

BE YE THANKFUL. — Colossians 3:15.

WHEN should we give thanks? “In everything.” When the darkest clouds were accumulating around Him Jesus rejoiced in spirit and said, “I thank Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth.” When Paul and Silas were bleeding from cruel stripes in the inner prison they prayed and sang praises to God.

WHY should we give thanks? Because His kindness deserves it. Because it is good for us to give thanks to God. It is a remedy for anxious cares and depression. It is good for others. A radiant face, thankful songs, victorious praise will speak for God as no words could speak.

HOW shall we give thanks? By habitual cheerfulness of expression, by avoidance of every utterance of discontent or discouragement, by joyful songs, and devoted lives. — A. B. Simpson.

Thanksgiving mercies, Lord we sing:

Thanksliving lives, O Lord, we bring.

Most Christians are familiar with the episode of the ten lepers who are healed but only one returns to express gratitude. Some years ago, Martin Bell wrote an imaginative reflection on why the other nine didn’t return to give thanks:

“What about the others? It’s simple, really. One of them was frightened — that’s all. He didn’t understand what had happened, and it frightened him. So he looked for some place to hide. Jesus scared him.

“A second was offended because he had not been required to do something difficult before he could be healed. It was all too easy. He had expected months, maybe years, of fasting and prayer and washing and righteous living to be the requirement. But he had done none of this. He had not earned his reward. . .

“The third had realized too late that he had not really wanted to be cleansed. That he did not know what to do or how to live or even who he was without his leprosy. . . Jesus had taken away his identity.

“. . . [T]he fourth leper did not return because in his delirium of joy, he forgot. He forgot. That’s all. He was so happy that he forgot.

“The fifth leper was unable to say thank you any more to anybody. There is something that happens to a [person] who must beg and who is shunned by his fellows, and who is . . . expected to say thank you. He just doesn’t say thank you any more to anybody — not even to Jesus.

“The sixth leper was a woman — a mother who had been separated from her family for eleven years because of the leprosy. She was now free to rejoin her husband and children. She did not return to give thanks because she was hurrying home. . .

“The seventh just didn’t believe that Jesus had anything to do with the cleansing. He knew that healing had taken place, but why and how were the questions. Certainly he did not believe in hocus pocus, magic, miracles — any of that. There was a perfectly intelligible explanation of what had happened, but it didn’t have anything to do with Jesus. . .” (The Way of the Wolf, pp. 47-49).

And Bell has two more. But in these seven we get the gist. We may fear the kind of power that can do so much good. We may think that the only blessings worth having are ones we’ve earned. We may, in some way, enjoy stewing in our problems. We may forget. We may not want to be made to give thanks. And we may just want to get on with our lives.

But it’s that seventh one of Bell’s lepers that I’m struck by today. I think that often, when really good things happen to us, we don’t thank God because we don’t really believe that God gave us anything. As with the seventh of Martin Bell’s lepers, we don’t express gratitude because we don’t believe that Jesus has anything to do with what’s fulfilling and thrilling in our lives. In our eyes, life is some combination of self-sufficiency and good fortune. We don’t say thanks because we think that anything that really matters to us has come to us by hard work and luck — not that it’s a gift from Someone else.

”And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful” Col 3:15

“Be thankful.” Such a simple phrase, but what did Paul mean? Be thankful for what? To whom? Let’s think about it.

The first thing that comes to mind is to be thankful to God for giving us salvation through His Son, Jesus. That’s good. If it weren’t for that, our lives would really be meaningless. If there were no “eternity,” why would we spend so much time being “good?” Without salvation, what purpose would there be in living for anyone by yourself? We all know self-centered people. They tend to be miserable individuals — and no one really likes being around them. Yes, thank you Father that you have given us a reason to be “good.” Only in obeying your laws and accepting your free gift of grace through Jesus do we find “sanity.”

Next think about being thankful to others. Most of us know people who are good to us. Granted, some of us may have to search a little longer than others, but there are always those who love us and bless us with their goodness. How long has it been since you said “thank you?” Have you thanked your spouse lately? They give up a lot for you. I know my wife gives a lot of herself to make me comfortable. (Thank you, dear!) Have you thanked your parents, your children, your pastor(s), your teachers, your neighborhood policeman, your postman, your paper delivery person, the pizza delivery person, the cashier at the grocery store, the clerk at the bank? The list is endless.

Finally thank yourself. WHAT? Yes, thank yourself — for accepting salvation through Jesus — for marrying such a wonderful person — for your part in having such wonderful children. We need to develop a “thankful” spirit. One that will be gracious and kind in all circumstances — yes, even when you open that ugly tie that great aunt Paula gives you for Christmas. So what if it still has gravy stains on it from when uncle Paul was alive! It’s the thought that counts. Be thankful in all things.

A lack of proper thankfulness to God is a clear sign of a basic godlessness.

________

Thanksgiving is a deeply theological act, rightly understood. As a matter of fact, thankfulness is a theology in microcosm — a key to understanding what we really believe about God, ourselves, and the world we experience.

A haunting question is this: How do atheists observe Thanksgiving? I can easily understand what an atheist or agnostic would think of fellow human beings and feel led to express thankfulness and gratitude to all those who, both directly and indirectly, have contributed to their lives. But what about the blessings that cannot be ascribed to human agency? Those are both more numerous and more significant, ranging from the universe we experience to the gift of life itself.

Can one really be thankful without being thankful to someone? It makes no sense to express thankfulness to a purely naturalistic system. The late Stephen Jay Gould, an atheist and one of the foremost paleontologists and evolutionists of his day, described human life as “but a tiny, late-arising twig on life’s enormously arborescent bush.” Gould was a clear-headed evolutionist who took the theory of evolution to its ultimate conclusion — human life is merely an accident, though a very happy accident for us. Within that worldview, how does thankfulness work?

The Apostle Paul points to a central insight about thankfulness when he instructs the Christians in Rome about the reality and consequences of unbelief. After making clear that God has revealed himself to all humanity through the created order, Paul asserts that we are all without excuse when it comes to our responsibility to know and worship the Creator.

He wrote:

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools ... [Romans 1:20-22].

This remarkable passage has at its center an indictment of thanklessness. They did not honor Him as God or give thanks. Paul wants us to understand that the refusal to honor God and give thanks is a raw form of the primal sin. Theologians have long debated the foundational sin — and answers have ranged from lust to pride. Nevertheless, it would seem that being unthankful, refusing to recognize God as the source of all good things, is very close to the essence of the primal sin. What explains the rebellion of Adam and Eve in the Garden? A lack of proper thankfulness was at the core of their sin. God gave them unspeakable riches and abundance, but forbade them the fruit of one tree. A proper thankfulness would have led our first parents to avoid that fruit at all costs, and to obey the Lord’s command. Taken further, this first sin was also a lack of thankfulness in that the decision to eat the forbidden fruit indicated a lack of thankfulness that took the form of an assertion that we creatures — not the Creator — know what is best for us and intend the best for us.

They did not honor Him as God or give thanks. Clearly, honoring God as God leads us naturally into thankfulness. To honor Him as God is to honor His limitless love, His benevolence and care, His provision and uncountable gifts. To fail in thankfulness is to fail to honor God — and this is the biblical description of fallen and sinful humanity. We are a thankless lot.

Sinners saved by the grace and mercy of God know a thankfulness that exceeds any merely human thankfulness. How do we express thankfulness for the provision the Father has made for us in Christ, the riches that are made ours in Him, and the unspeakable gift of the surpassing grace of God? As Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift” [2 Corinthians 9:15].

So, observe a wonderful Thanksgiving — but realize that a proper Christian Thanksgiving is a deeply theological act that requires an active mind as well as a thankful heart. We need to think deeply, widely, carefully, and faithfully about the countless reasons for our thankfulness to God.

It is humbling to see that Paul so explicitly links a lack of thankfulness to sin, foolishness, and idolatry. A lack of proper thankfulness to God is a clear sign of a basic godlessness. Millions of Americans will celebrate Thanksgiving with little consciousness of this truth. Their impulse to express gratitude is a sign of their spiritual need that can be met only in Christ.

So have a very Happy Thanksgiving — and remember that giving thanks is one of the most explicitly theological acts any human can contemplate. O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His lovingkindness is everlasting [1 Chronicles 16:34]. In all things, give thanks to God.