#Thankful
As I write this week’s blog, I pause in consideration of our having just celebrated Thanksgiving.
2020 has been an extremely difficult year filled with uncertainty about COVID-19. Many people have experienced financial hardship due to changes in hours of operation, business capacities or even business closures. Some have experienced difficulties in their health, while others I have lost a loved one. Even amidst the craziness that we all experience in every day life, God‘s Word reminds us that He is faithful.
In 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 we are told to, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (ESV) This helps us to reorient our compass to our Savior when we have been “off the path” distracted by the world for too long.
There are many reasons for us to be thankful. Even though the United States is experiencing difficulty at this time concerning the election and other hot topic items, we still live in a nation where we are free to worship and praise our God. Many of us still have our health, and although others of us might be facing some kind of health issue, God has still given us breath for the day and tasks that we can complete in His name. If we pause to consider the day and time in which we live, we can be thankful for the incredible advances in medicine, technology and other areas of our lives today which bring us comfort or a better standard of living. We live in a day and time that provides us incredible comforts that kings of old did not have the pleasure of experiencing such as heating and air conditioning, refrigerators, microwave ovens, cell phones, the internet and the benefit of the types of transportation we possess today just to name a few.
Even amidst the chaos that one may be experiencing, there is still one, over arching, incredible reason that we should be willing to give thanks, and that is the fact that our God, the sovereign creator of all things seen and unseen, has decided in his infinite mercy and grace to pour his wrath on the sin and disobedience of humanity on His Son, Jesus Christ.
That those of us who believe in him have been declared innocent of all of our offenses is truly the greatest reason for us to be thankful.
No matter how many years each one of us is given on this planet, the truth is we will spend eternity in one of two places. Those of us who have trusted in Christ are promised an eternity in His presence. The greatest miracle the world has ever experienced is the forgiveness of sin by a holy God. Let us live each day in light of this truth.
We rejoice in this fact, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord.” (NKJV)