Thanksgiving has a way of getting lost somewhere between our celebrations of “fall festivals” and Christmas. I often find that the same thing happens in my prayer life. The time that I spend offering thanks to God for all the many ways that He has blessed me gets lost. Sometimes I am focused on what I want God to do for me or someone else. Other times I get preoccupied with what the day holds and what I would like to see happen. Whatever the case, I want to spend more time thanking God.

In the fifth chapter of his First letter to the Thessalonians, the Apostle Paul writes, “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” That hits me hard. God’s will for me is to give thanks! I want to please God. I want Him to know how much I appreciate all that He has done for me. From the free gift of salvation, to a family that brings me incredible joy, and everything in between, I am overwhelmed with God’s goodness to me.

November indeed brings us the holiday called Thanksgiving. It is a holiday that we don’t want to miss. Not just the turkey and dressing and all that goes with it. We do not want to miss the opportunity during this month to stop often and give thanks to God. Maybe if I practice it enough in November, I will continue to make thankfulness a part of my day in the future. God loves us more than we can ever understand. His greatest desire is for us to spend time with Him. I want God to know that even though I can never come anywhere close to doing for Him what He has done for me, that I am thankful.

Psalm 100 says in part, “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations.” Happy Thanksgiving.

C.F. “Kim” Kimberling, Ph.D.

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