A Reason for Thanksgiving
By DeDe Southwick
Turkey, cranberries, dinner rolls, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, and salad.
Breathe.
Dinner plates, napkins, silverware, glasses, AND a centerpiece. THANKSGIVING! I love this holiday, food, family, and football. A set time to pause, consider and ponder what we are thankful for.
Thanksgiving. There are seasons it may be difficult to pull forward on the shelf of our life of something to be thankful for. We may have lost a job, or a loved one. Or our bank account matches our emotional bucket of strength, “empty.” Even the chaos of the world can paralyze us of our thanksgiving. Yet there IS something to be thankful for. You do have a reason for thanksgiving.
The great Psalm of thanks opens with, “Give thanks to the LORD for He is good.” (Ps. 136) The Hebrew language renders a beautiful word picture, “Give thanks…” offering the idea of reverent acknowledgment and of worship – with extended hands.
“His love endures forever.” The verse continues and the author found it needful to repeat this phrase twenty-six times throughout the rest of the Psalm. This word love (in Hebrew) is “hesed.” We know it biblically as mercy, goodness, loyalty and steadfast love and even … grace. What a pivotal word.
This mercy-filled (undeserved) love is enveloped in personal involvement and commitment to relationship. With this, His lovingkindness is precious (Ps. 36:7) marvelous (Ps. 17:7) undeserving (Ps. 103) abounding (Ps. 86:5) reviving (Ps.119:159) satisfying (Ps. 90:14) and everlasting (Ps. 103:17). THAT is our God!
Thankful yet?
King David’s well known and beloved Psalm 23 (verse 6) “Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life” (mercy is hesed). This “follow” is not a mere tag along behind, but … PURSUIT. It can take on a militant excursion like when Abram pursued Lot’s captors. (Gen 14). Or when Pharaoh pursued Israel (Ex 14). David too knew the concept of pursuit. God’s unending – steadfast love full of mercy pursued David. God pursues us! He pursues YOU. He is unrelenting. Aren’t you glad He does not let up or let go!
Need more reason for thanksgiving?
Moses is now an aged 120 years old. He has just told Israel Joshua will succeed him. He stands before the people declaring the greatness of God. “He is the Rock, His work is perfect…” (Dt. 32:4a). Perfect. The activity of God is without spot. It is complete and righteous. Moses knew. He and his God had been through an incredible journey. There is yet another word used to describe God being perfect, tucked way back in the Hebrew word picture – spent. God did not, does not withhold any of Himself. He uses all that He is and all He has in the appropriate time and way. That alone is amazing, but the bucket He pulls from never runs low or empty, it is always full. The nature of our God is perfect, and He spends it on YOU.
Thankful?
Trekking back to the very beginning. Genesis chapter one, God created everything. Genesis two; The narrative slows down and zeros in. We see God creating Adam, putting him in the Garden, giving him instructions; Tend the Garden and don’t eat from that tree over there, the one next to the Tree of Life. Do NOT eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. If you do, you will die. Eve is then created. Genesis three: Eve chats it up with the serpent. He twists his words and questions in such a way, doubt spreads across Eve. In her doubt, she disobeys. She eats and shares. Instantly everything changes. Everything.
In their disobedience sin rushes in. God and man(kind) are now in a broken relationship. We all know the rest of the story. We’ve heard it in Sunday School. We skim over it in our yearly “Read Thru the Bible.” God comes and finds the man and woman. He’s extremely ticked off. He curses man and the snake. He then kicks man and woman out of the garden. God slaps His hands together and with a heavy sigh, “Good riddance and good luck out there.”
Um, no.
You see the key is in verse 22, (chapter 3). They had not eaten from the Tree of Life (yet). They HAD to leave. HAD to! Adam and Eve were in a fallen state, broken relationship with their God, If they had stayed, they would have eaten from the Tree they DID have permission to eat – they would then live FOREVER – in that fallen state. Yes, God was angry, what father isn’t when his children disobey. But God was more grieved over their current relationship. He sending them away was merciful. Merciful. You can almost hear the Holy whisper as He points, telling them to go, “It’s alright, I have a plan.” If you’re sitting in Starbucks right now, lean over to the person at the next table (6 feet away) and tell them, “It’s alright, God had a plan!” (Wouldn’t that make for a discussion opener). The rest of the written Word, what we know as the Bible, is the description and history of that plan.
Thankful?
I am in awe of His plan and His design of man. God created man from the dust of the earth (Gen 2:7). Man’s body is biological. Continuing in verse 7, “God breathed into man’s nostrils the breath of life and he became a living being.” What design, BRILLIANT! It is HIS breath in us. Our bodies need the earth. To sustain and nurture the body, God provides animal, plant, mineral and water for us. But our soul, our inner – spirit man needs GOD to be sustained and nurtured. The apostle Paul wrote, “All scripture is God-breathed…” (2 Tim 3:16a). The author of Hebrews penned, “The word of God is living and active…” (4:12a). God breathed on those writing and He breathes on those reading. He sustains and nurtures. God created man to NEED Him! BRILLIANT!
God’s mercy-filled and gracious plan.
This plan, His story runs right up to us, to YOU. God loved, He gave the world and He made Christ, who never sinned an offering for us. (Jn 3:16; 2 Cor 5:21). Jesus knowing the plan, presented His life voluntarily. (Jn 10:18s; 1 Jn 3:16a). And we profit and gain from all this, it is all free – a gift. (Eph 2:8-9). We who were once cut off and far away are now brought back. (Eph 2:13; Col 1:21-22).
“Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good. His love endures forever.”
Indeed, a reason for thanksgiving.
