Real Thanksgiving
November 18, 2011
I just came in from mowing the lawn. “What?” You may be asking, “Why are you mowing the lawn this time of year?” Simple. I knew it would please my wife, Donna.
I think I could have lived without mowing the lawn. But I couldn’t live without pleasing Donna. You see, I am deeply in love with my wife. She and I have been together a long time and she has done so much for me. I adore her! So, when she kept dropping hints like, “I think the lawn could stand to be mowed one more time before winter sets in,” that was enough for me. I mowed the lawn. And, yeah, she was right, it needed one more going over.
As I was mowing my lawn this morning, I got to thinking that the same reasons I just gave for mowing my lawn are the reasons why we should obey God. We should obey God because we love Him and want to please HIm. Jesus said in John 14:15, “If you love me, you will obey what I command.” We should also obey God because, like my wife was about the lawn, He is right. Finally, we should obey God because of His faithfulness to us and all He has done for us. Which brings me to some thoughts about the Thanksgiving holiday in particular and about thanksgiving in general.
I think we can learn an important lesson about thanksgiving from Jonah, of all people. In Jonah, 2:9, we read Jonah’s prayer when in the belly of the great fish. Jonah prayed and said, “But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good.”
Jonah had determined in chapter two that he would obey God, something he had been reluctant to do in chapter one. But now, under the chastening hand of God, he determined to obey. And what was his motivation in obeying God? Thanksgiving.
I hope you don’t wait until you find yourself in the fish belly of life before you decide to be thankful AND obedient to God. But hey, if that’s what it takes to get your attention, God will put you there. But only because He knows what’s best for you and wants what is best for you.
My hope and prayer for each of us is that we will learn Jonah’s lesson about thanksgiving so we won’t have to find ourselves in the fish’s belly. Instead, let’s display our thankful hearts by being obedient to God. That is my desire and commitment as I approach this Thanksgiving holiday. I hope it is yours, too.
