Thanksgiving: The Heart of True Worship

After a short lull in festivities following Halloween, the next major event on everyone's mind is Christmas. The retailers have been ready for weeks already, but now the typical American is thinking of decorations and Christmas music, and of course, this year, again, Star Wars. "But what about Thanksgiving?" you ask. Well, we still look forward to it as well, but for most, Thanksgiving has long taken on the same status as Memorial Day: a day off with family (oh, yeah, and yummy food...and football). But the real meaning behind the holiday is all but forgotten, being evidenced by the fact that many now refer to it not as 'Thanksgiving' but 'Turkey Day.'

You may remember the great story of the first Thanksgiving you learned in elementary school about Squanto and the Pilgrims, but it wasn't until 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, that president Lincoln made Thanksgiving a national holiday, calling on all Americans to entreat God for His divine care to a hurting nation. From that first Thanksgiving celebration to its official recognition, Thanksgiving has been ingrained into the fabric of our country long before it itself had been recognized as such. In the early days, it was certainly called 'Thanksgiving' because it was a way for people to come together in order to thank God for His innumerable blessings. The Pilgrims well knew God's providential care in their lives, and despite horrific difficulty and loss, they turned their hearts toward God with gratitude.

While Thanksgiving may be nothing more than another festivity on the calendar for most today, to Christians, it should be much more than that, for thanksgiving is at the very heart of our worship. In fact, the Bible reveals that a lack of thankfulness is at the heart of all who reject the one, true God who has revealed Himself to them (Rom. 1:21). Repeatedly, Scripture calls us to be thankful. Take Colossians 3:15-17, for example:

And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

That's a lot of thankfulness in just a few verses! Obviously gratitude is something that is vital to the Christian life. And while we are typically prone to be thankful only when times are good and we have an abundance, 1 Thessalonians 5:18 reminds us to "give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." It is God's will that we be thankful at all times in all circumstances - the good, the bad, even the ugly! But just like anything God commands, He also supplies. Thankfulness flows out a of a heart that is filled by the Spirit of God, who produces within us the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithful, gentleness, and self control (Gal 5:22-23a).

So how can we cultivate thankfulness? Well, the context of Colossians 3:15-17 is the believer's response to his union with Christ. It is about what we are to do in response to the glorious truth that Christ died for our sins and then rose again, conquering sin and death and hell forever for all who will place their faith in Him. We are to put off old, sinful habits and put on new, godly ones in their place, and one of the glaring characteristics of the flesh is the propensity to grumble and complain. But the Christian is not only commanded to put off this tendency (Phil. 2:14), and to replace it with thankfulness (as we have noted above), and not only has he been given the empowerment to do so through the Holy Spirit, but he has been given the greatest motivation possible. When we think for just one moment about what we deserve for our sin against a holy, righteous God (see Rom. 6:23), and then think about what God has done for us in sending His Son to die in our place, instead of us - taking on all our guilt and shame and paying for it in full at the cross and then crediting to us His own perfect righteousness so that God can declare us not only innocent, but justified in His sight, what other response can we possibly have but thankfulness?! This is the very reason God commands us to "be thankful in all circumstances," because no matter how difficult those circumstances may be, we are citizens of heaven (Phil. 3:20)! And when we turn our minds away from our difficulties and just for a moment force ourselves to think about the many blessings God has given us, we should be overwhelmed.

Perhaps this Thanksgiving could be a time for you and your family to refocus your attention on God's goodness to you in sending His Son and providing all your needs. Some years ago our family endeavored to make Thanksgiving such a time, and so we began a family tradition we call 'The Journal of Thanks.' It is very simple, really. We have a typical journal that is reserved for one day of the year, and we spend some time going around the table, allowing each member of the family to state what he or she is thankful for over the course of the year. Mommy is the scribe, and this is helpful because we can read her handwriting and that makes it possible for us to spend some time reading the entries from the previous years. We've amassed several years now, and it is always amazing to read back through that journal and be reminded of the way our God has providentially watched over us and provided for us in our journey of life. Whether or not you have a similar tradition, I pray you will take time this Thanksgiving to rise above the smell of the turkey, the roar of the football game, and the stories of Uncle Bob, and give genuine thanks to God for all His blessings, especially for "His inexpressible gift" (2 Cor. 9:15)!