The Jubilee Singers sang a special song before Pastor Bob Sorensen brought his message, “Thankfulness is the road back to God.”
Three hundred ninety years ago the Pilgrims had the first Thanksgiving dinner. The harvest was in, but those that had survived the previous winter knew that they faced another winter and that cold, hunger, and sickness would be a threat. Things did not look too good. But they set aside a day for thanksgiving. God was able to bless that fledgling nation.
Things don’t look too good today. Our nation has a staggering debt, our dollars buy less, there is high unemployment and not much hope for better days. Our nation is at a crossroads where the winds of moral pollution threaten to destroy what is left of decency and it seems that God is withholding his blessing. It is time that our nation turned back to God. We need to remember that true thanksgiving is the road back to God and his blessings.
We owe thanksgiving to God because he is our Maker. He is worthy because he is our Creator. He is our Provider and our Sustainer. Everything from the air we breath to the food we eat has come from God’s hand. Our Creator is also our Redeemer.
When you acknowledge God for his goodness, you will see God as he really is. We can see with eyes that are open and hearts receptive to his will. A thankful person could go all night to list all the ways God has blessed him. An unthankful person does not know that God is in the picture. Being unthankful can develop into depression and fearfulness. Life does not seem to have a purpose until you realize that God’s word is true.
All the circumstances of life are in God’s hands. We are told to rejoice evermore, pray without ceasing, and in every thing to give thanks. If you belong to Christ, God will make things work out for good. Times of tears will come, but you know that God will not fail you. If the time seems long and you do not see the answer to your prayer, don’t give up on God. If you give up on God, Romans 1 says that God will in time give up on you. Being ungrateful to the Maker is the start of a downward spiral. When you reject God as God, you make your own god. When God gives up on you, you fall into all sorts of sin, you grow to hate any mention of God, and you influence others to do the same.
The Pilgrims were poor in material things but rich in faith. They looked to God for health and substance. They were rewarded for that faith. But now America no longer seems to see clearly. Rather than looking to God, they look to government. They have laid aside the Bible in schools, homes, and even in churches and have trusted in human reasoning. The results of that error is becoming clear It is time to turn back to God and the way back to God starts with being thankful. Are you one of God’s thankful people?
