Thoughts from daily Bible reading for today – November 24, 2016
It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night. Psalm 92:1-2
My grandfather was a voracious reader. I remember spending the Thanksgiving holiday visiting him and my grandmother, and how I would find him every morning and every afternoon hidden away in the corner of a room, quietly working his way through his latest selection, likely a novel about the American Old West or a legal thriller. However, on any given day I was even more likely to find him meditating upon the gospels or memorizing portions of the psalter. This man was admired and respected as a person of great character and virtue, yet in these still, quiet moments I was shown the source of his stature. I saw a man who was a senior leader in his community and executive at a multi-national company, yet never lost sight of the fact that he was a humble servant of Almighty God and received each new day as a gift to be cherished and celebrated.
On this Thanksgiving Day, my heart is filled with gratitude to God for the gift of my grandfather. I give thanks, not only for the man that he was, but the way in which he intentionally and faithfully passed these values and habits of faith on to me. Never was I left simply to observe him in prayer, nor was I made to feel like a nuisance or distraction. I was always invited in, shown in small, simple ways the joy that is found in knowing the Lord as he reveals himself through the Scriptures.
Today, I invite you to give thanks to the Lord for his steadfast love in your life.
First, take time to give thanks for the people God has placed in your life that have been for you constant sources of grace, love, hope and joy: family, friends, mentors, coaches. The list could go on and on. You are who you are today because other people selflessly invested in you and prayed for you, celebrated life’s joys and wept with you in life’s great sorrows.
Secondly, let this heart of gratitude for others serve as an invitation for you to go and do the same. Having received from others, how can you now become a source of life and hope for someone else? Who has God placed in your life that is in need of the same self-giving love that you have received? We overflow with love and thanksgiving toward God when we love others just as we have been loved- may it be true of us today and every day!
“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness” (Colossians 2:6-7).
Prayer
Father, we give thanks for your goodness and faithfulness to us, asking that we would freely love others just as you have loved us. Amen.Application
Give thanks today to God for the men and women who have shown his love to you, but also take time to think afresh of ways that you can be a source of grace and love to someone else.Related Reading
Psalm 69:30; John 13:34; Philippians 4:6; 1 Timothy 2:1Post/Tweet today
You are who you are today because other people selflessly invested in you and prayed for you, celebrated life’s joys and wept with you in life’s great sorrows. #gratefulhearts #WisdomHuntersWorship Resource
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