Thanksgiving is a wonderful time set aside for giving thanks to the Lord. But the scriptural example of thanksgiving is not something that is done only on specific days. It is a continual practice of giving thanks and praise to the Lord every day. The pattern in our lives should not be thanking the Lord whenever we feel He has blessed us. We should have an attitude, a mindset, and an intentional emotion of gratitude for everything God is and does. Let this Thanksgiving be the beginning of a new lifestyle of overflowing gratitude before the Lord.

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Show Notes:

In the transition from the Tabernacle to the Temple, David commanded the Levites to thank and praise the Lord every morning and evening. This concept of giving continual thanks and praise to the Lord goes deeper than our concept of giving thanks. When someone gives us something, we say, “Thank you.” And so our definition of thanksgiving still has this idea of thanking God after He blesses us. A better word for the scriptural concept of continual thanks to God is gratitude.

The Scriptures show us that we can develop a mindset, an attitude, and especially an emotion of gratitude before the Lord. Even when we face difficulties and negative situations, we can still have this emotion of gratitude because it is not dependent on our circumstances. We do not have to deny what may be happening to us, but we can continually focus on the Lord and develop within ourselves the sense of wonder and gratitude for all that God is and all that He does.

Therefore, let us celebrate Thanksgiving this year with gratitude. Let it be an expression of our continual thanks and praise to the Lord and not isolated to one specific gift or answer to prayer that He has given us. Let our gratitude become something that we develop within the depths of our being as part of our relationship with God, whereby we say daily, “Lord, we are not thankful for one or two things that You did for us. We are overflowing with gratitude for all things that You are to us and have provided for us.”

Key Verses:

• 1 Chronicles 23:30. “They are to stand every morning to thank and to praise the LORD, and likewise at evening.”
• Psalm 92:1–5. “It is good to give thanks to the LORD and to sing praises to Your name, O Most High.”
• 2 Peter 1:3. “His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness.”
• Colossians 2:6–7. “As you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, … overflowing with gratitude.”

Quotes:

• “We don’t just want to say ‘thank you’ for something. We want to develop in our hearts an attitude of gratitude.”
• “When we talk about gratitude, it’s not just an action; it’s an emotion that is being expressed from within the depth of our being.”
• “There is an unending list and an unending focus of what we should be giving praise and thanks to the Lord for.”

Takeaways:

1. David introduced a new responsibility and ministry for the Levites. They were to stand every morning and evening to thank and praise the Lord. It is also important for us to find a new expression in our giving of thanks and worship to the Lord.
2. It is good to set aside one day at Thanksgiving to express our thanks to the Lord. But we need more than just a practice of thanking the Lord on one day and afterwards reverting to a life of ungratefulness. We need the Levitical pattern of thanking and praising the Lord continually.

Giving thanks when we are blessed is still a limited emotion in response to our circumstances. We need to develop an intentional emotion of gratitude that is a continual expression of praise and thanks to the Lord.