Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! We have much to be thankful for in the Alvarado household this year; our faith, family, friends and all the blessings and struggles that have gotten us to this point. There was a point a few years ago when Christian and I thought we would never be able to have children of our own and the Lord has blessed us with three!  We are abundantly blessed and thankful.

I've been discussing Thanksgiving with Maggie and I thought I would share the things that she is thankful for because it makes me laugh. This is her order, not mine: Blue, pink, red, yellow, Mama, Daddy, Mimi, Lincoln (our dog), chocolate, babies (in Mama's belly) Lovey, Rapunzel and Baby Lizard (Pascal from the movie "Tangled"). When quizzed about other family members she would say, "Yes!" and shake her head so please do not get your feelings hurt if you weren't listed.....Aunt Nene'! :)

A dear friend of ours sent us a sermon she heard on the radio the other day. It was such a God moment because I needed to hear the message right when I received it.  I love it when that happens! The message made me think and made me thankful.  Below is a condensed version of what I was sent. I pray it pricks your heart the way it did mine.

Grace, mercy, and peace be to you in Jesus' Name, the One who makes a thanksgiving life possible, today and forever. Amen.

Next week is Thanksgiving Day in the United States. And, for many, it is still a commemoration of the feast of harvest that the Pilgrims celebrated with the Indians 400 years ago. For others, though, it is a call not only to be reminded of that first Thanksgiving Day, to be thankful to God for your blessings, but a charge to live life a certain way in all circumstances.

But, when you gather around the Thanksgiving dinner table this year, let me ask you this: if you had been one of those first Pilgrim settlers coming to the New World, would you have been able to give thanks that first Thanksgiving Day?

Consider what they had been through. They had uprooted themselves and sailed for America, on a journey so dangerous, they were advised first "To make out thy will." The crossing was very rough and the Mayflower was blown off course. Instead of reaching Virginia, where Englishmen had settled 13 years earlier, the Pilgrims ended up in the wilds of Massachusetts. By the time they found a place to make their new home, Plymouth, they called it, winter had set in.

The storms were frightful. Shelter was rudimentary. There was little food. Within weeks, nearly all the settlers were sick.

Governor William Bradford later recalled, "in two or three months' time, half of their company died, especially in January and February....being infected with the scurvy and other diseases.... There died sometimes two or three of a day."

When spring came, Indians showed them how to plant corn, but their first crops were dismal. Supplies ran out, their sponsors in London refused to send more and even when they first sent a shipment of goods to England, it was stolen by pirates.

So, if you had been there in 1621, if you had seen half of your friends die, if you had suffered through famine, malnutrition, and sickness, if you had endured a year of heartbreak and tragedy, would you have felt grateful?

In view of such things, Paul's words, then, seem almost incredible, yet he unequivocally proclaims for those who trust in Christ, "Rejoice always! Pray continually and give thanks in all circumstances!

Who can live that kind of life? What kind of person would you have to be? I'll tell you the truth; it sure seems like a person like that would have to be superhuman, almost too good to be true. So, is that really the secret of a thankful life, being superhuman? Or is it something as simple and as powerful as knowing the God of heaven and earth, the Lord of the cross and resurrection as your Savior in all things?

Let's learn together today, that because we can trust in God in all things, we can, as His people, live a life of thanksgiving in this sinful world, no matter the struggle or the circumstance. Let's learn that there is a right way to live life, resourced by faith, inspired by hope, unleashed in thanksgiving.

"Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.19

Now, if Paul is saying that this is the right way to live, why do so many, Christians and non, not live this way?

Well, first of all, many people today have a wrong view of thanksgiving. You'll hear people recount their blessings as a means for that thankful spirit, but even then, deep in their hearts are also the realities of their sufferings, pains, disappointments, and trials. Too many people miss out on the power of a thanksgiving life because, even when they try to live this way, they falsely root their thankfulness in circumstances of the moment and not in the enduring work and word of God on their behalf.

Circumstances change, But God never changes. Other people might fail us, but God never forgets His people. Our own insecurities, even our sins, can stifle our thankfulness just when it is needed most. But God is a constant resource for our thanksgiving life, with His forgiveness, His promises, and His love always at the ready in our greatest time of need!

During this Thanksgiving Season and all throughout the year put the specific grace of God to work in your life; with a rejoicing heart because God never stops looking out for you, because God Himself is making a way through the troubles that you are experiencing. And even if you are facing the reality of death this holiday season, He is merely setting the stage for your glorious healing and restoration. Rejoice always by faith in Christ, you are always in the Father's caring hands.

Finally, during this Thanksgiving Season, put the specific grace of God to work in your life by praying without ceasing. Why? Because God hears your prayers no matter the answer. You know, God always answers, either "Yes, No, or wait," never maybe, because there is no maybe with God and His gracious love. He didn't go to the cross for you and rise again from the dead for you to offer you a maybe answer to prayer. No, He answers. And those answers are always meant to keep us close to Him in faith.

And open your heart up to the fact that God can use all circumstances in this world to draw you closer to Him, to draw others to Himself through you, or even to deepen your relationships to one another through trial.

And because of Him, dear friend, you can put the power of rejoicing and thanksgiving to work in your life today. Let the troubles and the successes of each day be merely opportunities to give thanks to God who promises through it all, to be faithful to you. Live your life in Christ, be resourced by faith, inspired by hope, unleashed in thanksgiving.

Presented on The Lutheran Hour on November 18, 2012By Rev. Gregory Seltz, Lutheran Hour Speaker
Copyright Lutheran Hour Ministries

Thank you for your prayers! We are thankful for them.
Love, Krystle