Aaron eagerly tears through the wrappings of his package. His fourth birthday is exciting! He loses the card and forgets who gave him the present. Finally he smiles broadly as he holds his new toy.
Aaron’s mother asks, “What do you say?” He gazes around at those at his party, not knowing whom to thank.
Our lives can be like that of an overwhelmed child at a birthday party. We daily receive the blessings of food, clothes, and shelter. We enjoy family and friends, work and rest, reputation and respect. Like that child, we may forget to be thankful. We also may not even know whom to thank.
God’s Word reminds us whom to thank. It says, “Every good andperfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights” (James 1:17). The daily provisions and the special blessings we receive throughout our lives are provided by the hand of a gracious God.
No wonder the Bible says, “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever” (Psalm 106:1).
What if we are not thankful? What if we think we deserve God’s gifts? Sin is the culprit! Sin confuses us and threatens to make us ungrateful toward God.
To remove our sin God gave his greatest gift of all — his Son, Jesus Christ. The most familiar passage in the Bible says, “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son” (John 3:16). Jesus, our Savior, won eternal life for us. This is why we give thanks.
Like four-year-old Aaron, we need to be guided to our God in order to properly respond to him for all his gifts. God’s Word does that. Christian worship also provides a wonderful opportunity to regularly think about his gifts and to give him thanks for them.
Join us for worship at our Thanksgiving Eve Service on Wednesday, November 21, at 7:00 p.m. Join us as we remember all the blessings we have and who gave them to us. Praise God with us for his great gifts!
