The next time you step out at night see the stars and thank the One who put them in space. The next you catch a sunrise or a sunset, say a prayer of thanks to the one who created it. Or for that matter when you see a rose, or a babbly brook, or a rainbow, or that first blanket of snow, don’t forget to thank the One who gave it to you and me, no strings attached. Just a simple gift so we can enjoy.
Because of God’s care, we should be thankful for his presence. It has been said that people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. Do you realize how much God cares for you? Do you grasp that you are always on his mind? You are constantly under his watchful eye? The word translated “care” in the NIV is sometimes translated “visit” in other translations. It means “to attend to, to observe.” God, like a caring friend, a good doctor, and a loving pastor all rolled up in one, focuses on our needs. Sometimes we don’t see him, and other times we don’t feel him. But God is there. He quietly intersects our lives meeting our needs when we need him most.
Remember the footprints story? A man looks back on his life and sees two sets of footprints. One is his; the other is God’s. As the man observes his life, when things are going well there are two distinct sets of footprints. But, interestingly, when life is difficult and the times are trying there is only one set of footprints. He questions God, as to why he leaves him when life is hard. God responds by saying, “My son, you don’t understand. When there is only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.”
God is a caring God. Like Hallmark cards, “He cared enough to send the very best.” When he saw our need for forgiveness he sent his one and only Son to die for our sins. He did for us on the cross what we could not do ourselves. For that we should be eternally grateful.
We truly have much to be thankful for, don’t we? Giving thanks to God for all he has done should be one of the most distinctive marks of the believer in Jesus Christ. Is that true of you? Or has the spirit of ingratitude hardened your heart and chilled your relationship with God and with others? Nothing turns us into bitter, selfish, dissatisfied people more quickly than an ungrateful heart. And nothing will do more to restore contentment and the joy of our salvation than a true sprit of thankfulness.
To be grateful, after all, is to see God, the world, and ourselves aright — to recognize that all of life is a gracious gift from his hand. We are all God’s debtors. It is truly to believe in a God. This Thanksgiving I hope you don’t forget God. Make sure he is first and last on your thanksgiving list.
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Rick Ezell is a pastor and writer in Naperville, Illinois.