Pausing To Give Thanks

THANKSGIVING 2024

PAUSING TO GIVE THANKS

- - Read Psalm 100:1-5

This psalm begins with “Shout triumphantly to the Lord, or, Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, or Shout for joy to the Lord”, depending on the translation you are reading.

So often, however, instead of shouting triumphantly to the Lord, we shout angrily at the Lord, or we complain miserably to the Lord.

I saw a preacher recently who said his wife asked him, on the way home from church, why we reformed guys believe in the sovereignty of God when it comes to salvation, but we don’t believe in the sovereignty of God when it comes to the other events in our lives.

Why is it that you guys look around and it’s all doom and gloom for you. You’re unable to see the hand of God and the blessings of God. All you see is the bad in the world. We certainly arena’t the first generation to suffer from that dilemma.

When the New England colonies started, the settlers endured many hardships and difficulties. They were pious and religious people, so they prayed and fasted a lot to get through the difficult times. They thought so much about their problems and difficulties that they often became gloomy and discontent and even sometimes thought of returning to England with the persecutions they once wanted so desperately to flee.

Finally, when it was suggested again, that they have another day of praying and fasting, a plain, common-sense old colonist rose in the meeting and said that he thought they had brooded over their difficulties long enough and it seemed high time that they should consider some of their mercies. He said, the colony was growing, the fields increasing in harvests, the rivers full of fish, the woods full of game, the air sweet; and above all, they had what they came for, civil and religious liberty. He recommended that instead of holding another fast, that they instead hold a day of thanksgiving, a time of feasting.

My friends, we have seen some trying times these past few months. We have endured several hurricanes. Some are still enduring the affects of those storms. We have just endured an ugly election. Some are enduring the pains of a fallen world, with family problems, sickness, and even death touching our homes. We have wayward children, misguided and dishonest politicians, increasing prices, and insurance, and taxes.

It is so easy sometimes to allow ourselves to become overwhelmed by the struggles and frustrations of life. There are other times when we take our service and ourselves to the Lord so seriously that we lose the joy of our faith. We become grim. It is at those times we need the 100th Psalm as an antidote. It is at those times we need to remember the many blessing we have to be thankful for.

My friends, in these 5 short verses, and the 85 words that make up these verses we find 7 reasons you and I, in the midst of the storm, can be thankful.

I. THE LORD IS GOD – v3

I thank the Lord because He is God. There are many people in the world today who do not know the true God, who do not know the true Lord. Think of the many people in the world today who live in fear of demons and evil spirits. How many natives people, to this day, still stay awake at night in fear of the evil lurking in the darkness. How many people today burn sacrifices and wear charms, and do all sorts of things, trying to make sure that good luck will come their way and so the evil spirits will be driven off.

Can you imagine how terrible it would be if the Devil were in charge of the world? Can you imagine how terrible it would be if the True God, the God we serve was like Allah, the god the Muslims claim? Imagine how terrible it would be if we served Allah, a god who cannot be approached, who doesn’t really care about people; imagine a world run by a god who is pleased when his people blow up innocent women and children.

Praise the Lord; we don’t serve such a God. Our loving, approachable, knowable, caring, prayer hearing, Son sending, Jehovah, He is God! The Lord, He is God! We pause and give thanks because the Lord is God.

Second, we pause and give thanks because God made us.

II. GOD MADE US – v3

The 2nd reason we pause to give thanks is because God made us. There are some who believe that we descended from apes. That somewhere, millions and millions of years ago, a few chemicals got together there in a pool, and that was the beginning of life. These same individuals tell us that all of life today has emerged, has evolved from that first pool, and that you and I are here by chance.