Probably the
most important part of November is Thanksgiving.
During this holiday season we enjoy family and friends and want to be
with them. We are also happy for the food we
have to eat and thoroughly enjoy the bountiful provision and nourishment we
receive. We appreciate the wonderful
country in which we live and delight in the freedom we enjoy. All of these things are good and wonderful,
but when it comes to thanksgiving, Scripture tells us that the
expression of thankfulness needs to be directed towards God and our thankfulness needs to be
a continual and an ongoing process in our lives.
Focus of Thankfulness. Notice the thankfulness that the
Apostle Paul had when he says, “I thank my God every time I remember you.” (Philippians
1:3). He appreciated the people to whom
he was writing; they were great friends of his and helped him during his time
of need. However, his thankfulness
was expressed, not to these people, but to God. When God is the focus of our thankful spirit,
it is He who receives praise and honor for that which we enjoy. By our act of thankfulness expressed to God
we acknowledge our dependence on Him. We
acknowledge that we are needy people and that He is the only One who can meet the
deepest needs of our hearts.
Extent of Thanks. In another portion of Scripture, Paul shares
these words - "So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness“ (Colossians 2:6-7).
Thankfulness is to be more than just the expression of the word “thanks”. Thanks is to be in excess; it is to
overflow. When I purchase a bag of
popcorn or an order of French fries, I like the container in which this food comes
to be more than full. I want it to overflow with the delicious morsels. The same idea is expressed in Paul’s challenge. He wants people to be thankful, but he wants their
thankfulness to overflow. Our thankfulness
ought always to be in excess. It should abound
in both quality and quantity.
As
you enjoy Thanksgiving this year my prayer for you and your family is that you
will concentrate on these two aspects of thankfulness – (1) Let your thanks be expressed to God and (2) Let your thankfulness be characterized by an abundant overflow. Have a blessed Thanksgiving.
