thanksgiving – Karen Gamble Writes

It’s Thanksgiving Week!

It’s that time of year!

Thanksgiving is only a few days away.

It kicks off the official holiday season.

Before we know it, Christmas will be here!

Lots of people say it’s the most wonderful time of the year.

For many women it’s often the hardest.

Extra cooking, guests, shopping, holiday parties, and events take a lot of our time, energy, and effort.

I could get tired just thinking about it!

Part of what drives us during this season is a desire to show our family how much we care and to give them a great family holiday filled with lots of memories and love.

That is a good thing as long as we keep it in check and don’t let it overwhelm us.

Unfortunately, too often we get so busy trying to get it right we lose sight of why we’re doing it.

This cheats us out of enjoying it and defeats the purpose of even doing it.

One of the other things that drives us this time of year is fear.

Category: God, Holiday, Trust | LEAVE A COMMENT

How to Give Thanks

I recently wrote about the need to give thanks in all circumstances (read that post here).

We saw from 1 Thessalonians 5:18 how we are to give thanks in all situations, whether good or bad, big or small.

The question, then, is:

“What does it mean to give thanks, and how do you do it?”

To give thanks means just what it says, to say thank you from a feeling of appreciation for what someone has done.

When we tell God thank you, it’s our way of letting Him know we see and appreciate Him and how He is working in our lives.

We are to be thankful for His sacrifice of Jesus, for the salvation it offers, and that this gift has provided a way for us to be rescued from ourselves and our sins.

We are to:

“give thanks to God because He is good and His love endures forever.” Psalm 107:1 (NIV)

Not only is the above verse true, it’s so important that it or a verse very similar to it is repeated in the Scriptures several times!

If you’re not sure how to go about doing it, you can follow these steps to say thank you to God:

1-Humble your heart and realize that God does deserve to be thanked for what He has done, is doing, and will do.

2-From the deepest part of you, look to God and at what He has done for you personally.

3-Pick one thing and say something along the lines of, “God, thank you for _____,” and tell Him what it is you are thankful for. You can do it silently or out loud, whichever you are more comfortable with.

It’s that simple.

If you don’t know what to start with, try thanking Him for any one of these:

You have a job, a place to stay, a vehicle, a meal to eat today, a sibling you are close to, $3 in your pocket. You saw a bird outside, it rained, it didn’t rain, the clouds are out, the sun is out, you have a pair of shoes to wear, you have water to bathe in at home. You got to go to lunch with a friend, you got to visit with your grandparent, you went on a trip, you got to stay home and rest.

You get the idea.

Don’t worry if you aren’t good at it. Don’t worry if it feels odd.

Just pick something and try it. The more you do it, the easier it will become.

The more you do this, the more you will begin to see just how much He is working in your life and all around you.

You might even consider keeping a journal of the things you are thankful for. This will give you a chance to look back at the good things going on in your life so that when you are down you can be reminded of just how faithful and generous God really is.

The important thing is to daily tell God how thankful you are and how much you appreciate Him.

So, tell me, what are you thankful for today?

For further reading
1 Thessalonians 5:18 Give thanks in all circumstances
Psalm 107:1 Give thanks to the Lord
Psalm 136:1 Give thanks to the Lord
Psalm 136:3 Give thanks to the Lord

Category: God, Prayer, Scripture Study | LEAVE A COMMENT

Thanking God In the Bad Times

As Christians, we are called to be thankful to God.

It’s not that hard to thank Him for the good things that happen to us, but what about when bad things happen?

Do we thank Him then? Should we?

Look at 1 Thessalonians 5:18 –

“give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (NIV)

It says we are to give thanks in ALL circumstances.

Not just in the good ones. In the bad ones, too.

That can be hard!

How do we thank God in a situation where a loved one is ill?

Or, a relative is seriously injured in an accident? What if they die?

What if a partner leaves without warning?

Do we thank God in these situations?

The answer is yes, we do. In all of them.

No matter the circumstance or situation, there is always something to thank God for. Otherwise, He wouldn’t have told us to.

We can thank Him that they only broke one arm, not both. We can thank Him the illness isn’t worse. We can thank Him for the friends who step up to support and encourage us.

Even if the worst case scenario happens, there are still things we can thank God for.

We can thank Him for the privilege of having known that person and having them in our lives.

We can thank Him for how He blessed our time together.

We can thank God for being there for us; for His presence in our lives as He comforts and strengthens us to walk through this season of heartache.

We can thank God for knowing what is the best outcome for the situation, even when we don’t understand or agree with that outcome.

We can thank God for working in our lives, even when we can’t or won’t see it.

It may seem impossible at first, but if we will focus on God’s goodness and trust that as Creator of the Universe and Author and Finisher of our faith God knows best as He is working all things together, we will begin to see where He is working in the situation.

Then, we can thank Him for those specific things. This will open our eyes to even more things He is doing. More things to thank Him for.

The point is we are supposed to turn our hearts and eyes to God and to begin to thank Him for the good things in our lives despite this hard situation we are dealing with as we maintain our focus on Him and not on the things happening to and/or around us.

Will it be easy? Not necessarily. But as we begin to thank Him for His goodness and who He is, our heart will begin to soften and we will begin to feel His presence. This will give us peace and strength that will sustain us through the hard season.

Will it be painful? Often. But, out of that pain will come healing, growth, and learning.

It will be a chance to grow closer to Christ as we see God for who He truly is and begin to better understand that He really is both working in our lives and interested in comforting and healing us.

It is this seeing His presence and work in our lives and knowing He cares about each one of us that will make it so much easier to give thanks for all that He is doing for us, both in good seasons and bad.

What about you? Are you giving thanks to God in the season you’re in?