Being Thankful

What does it mean to be thankful? It’s a word that we throw around a lot, especially during this time of year. But what does it actually mean?

Is someone thankful simply because they have an abundance of things to enjoy and they are happy about it? Is someone thankful simply because they have great relationships with family and friends that enrich their lives? Are we thankful only because of these things?

Would we be thankful if they were all removed? What would it mean to be thankful if we lived in need all the time or if we lived in loneliness or fear? Would we, could we be thankful then?

Psalm 34:8 says, “Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.”

Please don’t misunderstand me. I am not wishing to have everything good and valuable removed in my life to see if I would still be thankful and I don’t want that for anyone else. I am simply trying to figure out want thankfulness really is apart from everything I have been blessed with as a healthy, middle-class married with two kids in a reasonably healthy, loving and functional family, American. (That’s a lot of adjectives!)

What does God really want to teach me/us about being thankful?

I am firmly convinced that the good news of Psalm 34:8 to be true it must be equally true for me in Houston, TX USA as it is for someone in Nairobi, Kenya or San Salvador, El Salvador or Calcutta, India or Manila, Philippines, etc. If that verse is truly good news for me it must be good news for Christians there as well. So, somehow, being thankful as a Christian has to be much deeper than the temporal things we value. It must be much deeper and broader than that because I hear stories of Christians in those places and others who are truly thankful amidst desperate poverty or persecution or disease or all of the above.

Which brings me back to my original question: What does it mean to be thankful?

I don’t have complete answers. Unfortunately, I only have more thoughts and more questions. But I believe God is at work, teaching me what it really means to be thankful. I think things might be different in my life as a result.

As you reflect on what it means to be thankful, what has God taught you? What is He teaching you now? How are things different as a result?

Making it clear and simple!

Last week as I was preparing for my sermon I wanted to develop a short, pithy definition of the Gospel. I didn’t want to reinvent the wheel so I went on line and searched for some definitions that others had put together. I thought surely there would be others who were in my position who had come up with something that just hit the mark.

I read and read and read. I read a lot of good stuff from a lot of people way smarter than I am. Unfortunately most of their definitions were a half a page or more. That is anything, but simple. On top of that, most of their definitions were filled with very technical language that was absolutely theologically precise, but hard for the average person to understand, especially if they are not familiar with the Bible.

I read and read and read. Finally, I gave up finding that perfect statement and came to terms with the fact that I would need to develop my own. No doubt with some of the inspiration of all the brilliant people I read I came up with the following simple definition of the Gospel. Here it is:

God’s Son Jesus died in our place to pay the price for our sin and those who trust Him and surrender to Him are forgiven, graciously offered new life and adopted into the loving fellowship of God’s eternal family.

My goal is for clarity and simplicity. I want it to be clear, with words and terms nearly everyone can understand, and I want it to be simple so that no one will get lost along the way.

It’s still a work in progress. I have already edited it briefly a number of times and am open to any suggestions you have.

Feel free to pick it apart and put it back together again with your input.

In the meantime, allow the power and wonder of the Gospel truth sink deep in your heart and mind and work its transforming work on you every day.

How are my words and thoughts?

“May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.” – Psalm 19:14

This is a powerful and challenging passage of scripture that hits us right where we live every day, everywhere.

If the words coming out of our mouths were pleasing to God, would they be different words from the ones we normally utter? The things that we say matter a great deal. We have the power with our words to build someone up or tear them down, to speak the truth or a lie, to point someone to Jesus or to lead them away from Him.

If the meditations of our heart, the things we think about and dwell on, were pleasing to God, would they be different? The things we think about may even matter more than our words sometimes. If we think about something long enough we are going to act on it. Nearly everything we do, whether good or evil, is a result of something we have thought about ahead of time. If our hearts are seeking after Godly things then Godly words and actions will likely follow.

If God is my Rock and Redeemer how does that change the equation of my life? A rock is something secure, immovable, something that can always be counted on. A redeemer is one who buys people out of slavery or bondage of some kind. They are hopelessly trapped, but the redeemer sets them free. If God is my Rock and my Redeemer then everything in my life is affected by that reality. There is not a single thing that is outside of God’s concern, not a single thing that He is unaware of. In fact, God is keenly aware of what is going on with us and, as a result, He has offered us redemption. At the same time His ways and His character never change. We can count on them no matter what.

I don’t completely understand how this all shakes out in my life, but I am thankful for it. I am also challenged as well. I want everything in my life to be pleasing to God. And when it isn’t, I want to repent and run to Him for forgiveness and another taste of the redemption He has granted me through Jesus.

How does this verse encourage, challenge or speak to you? How are your words and thoughts?

Do you yearn for Heaven and to be with Jesus?

Every time I try to think about eternity and Heaven I am overwhelmed by the vastness of it all. I have said many times it seems to me like a vast ocean that can never be fully explored or understood, but can be experienced in part. I know a bunch of the theological explanations about eternity and I accept them, but that still doesn't mean I understand the concept. Eternity is forever, totally void of our understanding of time and space. History, current events, future planning - none of that really makes sense when you really try to focus on eternity. Here is what I believe in a nutshell:

1. Eternal life is real - and I'm living a taste of it now!
2. Depending on the life we choose, we will take one of two eternal paths - what the Bible calls Heaven and Hell.
3. The offer has been made to every person to embrace the man Jesus as Son of God, Savior of sins, Lord of life. Doing that grants one entry into the eternal kind of life I am living now.
4. Somehow, in ways I don't fully understand, aspects of that eternal life - peace, joy, deliverance from sin, transformation into Christlikeness, hope, etc. - are already taking shape in me. Indeed, as the days and weeks go by I can see it taking shape more and more.
5. The eternal kind of life I hope for in Heaven is so much different and greater that it simply blows my mind to try and define it.
6. Sadly, the hellish alternative is just as impossible to fully grasp in all its terrible consequences . . . and I am thankful Jesus has kept me from that experience. And I pray that my life will be used by Him to keep others from that experience as well.
7. In the present, based on my eternal trajectory, I am either bringing Hell to earth or Heaven to earth. Not that my life will be Heaven on earth, but my life in Christ should bring tastes of Heaven to me and to those around me. For those who are not in Christ, the opposite is the case.

I long for more and more signs of Heaven in my life, for more signs of the holiness that Jesus is bringing and seeks to bring to me. And I also long for more and more people to experience Heaven with me some day.

How about you? How do you understand God’s eternal reality to be shaping your life?

Are you a quicker forgiver?

Forgiveness is a non-negotiable in the life of a Christian. On one hand, we must be forgiven for the offenses we commit. On the other hand, we must forgive those who commit offenses against us.

There are far too many texts in the Bible to mention on this subject, even if we limit them to Jesus own words. However, here are a couple of key passages from the mouth of Jesus:

“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.” – Matthew 5:23-24

“For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” – Matthew 6:14-15

“And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.” – Mark 11:25-26

“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” – Luke 6:37-38

We cannot ignore these powerful commands or treat them as optional and still be followers of Jesus. That means we have to come to terms with the unforgiveness in our lives any time it appears.

In my experience, when people hold onto unforgiveness it’s usually because they don’t understand what forgiveness is or they have never received it themselves. Here are some examples:

1. People mistakenly believe forgiveness says what was done against us is “OK.”

2. People wrongly believe that forgiving someone means getting into the position where they are free to hurt us again.

3. People have only received a poor substitute for forgiveness, like when someone makes it conditional or temporary.

4. People incorrectly believe that if they truly forgive they will forget what happened.

All of these (and many more like them) notions are wrong and if they get mixed up in our understanding of forgiveness we end up poisoning this beautiful gift God offers us.

Instead, forgiveness is about allowing God’s forgiving love and peace for us to bring us to the place where we can be whole and free. It is about His supernatural power vindicating us, making clear to us and to others that we were wronged. It is about protecting us from the offender in such a way that we do not become like them. It is about receiving the unconditional acceptance and love of God in such a way that we are able to offer a portion of it to others. Finally, it is about remembering that offense as it truly is, but releasing our right to take revenge for it because God has allowed us to be free from it. In that regard it is about a supernatural victory we gain from God that brings us peace and right relationship with Him and, at least on our part, with others.

What role has forgiveness played in your life?

What areas do you need to grow in to better resemble Jesus?