thanksgiving

Tom and I are trying to do a daily devotional. We are reading "Jesus Calling-- Enjoying Peace in his Presence" written by Sarah Young. Tom is much more disciplined with his reading while I have only been able to read a handful of entries. This morning I was in my office and I noticed the book and decided to sit down and read today's. This is part of what was written:

Thankfulness opens the door to My presence...

Thankfulness is built on the substructure of trust...

See how many times you can thank Me daily; this will awaken your awareness to a

multitude of blessings...

Practice my presence by practicing the discipline of thankfulness.

The recommended Bible verses were Psalm 100:4 and I Thessalonians 5:18

Psalms 100:4

Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise;

give thanks to Him and praise His name.

I Thes. 5:18

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

Several things reached out to me:

1 For Christmas I had given everyone a small daily calendar that we were to record things that we were thankful for. I encouraged everyone to try to write something everyday. After reading today' devotional, I was reminded that I had written maybe 6 days worth in the over 7 months since we were to start. It is time to start making a list again.

2. I am to be in presence of God-- in communion with God. God is not an idea, but Someone that I am to have a relationship with.

3. I am to come into His presence with thanksgiving... not with a list of what I need or what I think every-one else needs, but with a heart that is thankful for all that I have. There is a time for asking God for help, but it is not when I first "walk in.

4. I am to come into His presence with praise... it's not enough to be thankful, I must also give God all the praise. He is the source of all good things and He deserves the glory.

5. Sometimes I wonder about God's will for my life and it seems too abstract or obscured from me, but the verse in I Thessalonians states very clearly one thing He wants me to do is be thankful in all circumstances.

6. I can be thankful in all circumstances only if I am in Jesus Christ. I have to know and believe in Jesus Christ. Through Jesus I have been forgiven and my relationship with God has been restored. Jesus has shown to me that God is good and sovereign so I have no reason to fear, but can trust God's love for me and His plan for my life.

So my plan is to dust off that calendar, open up my eyes to the blessings God has given to me, and praise Him!