BIBLE PASSAGE:
“Give thanks to the Lord for He is good;
His love endures forever.”
(Psalm 118:1)
MEDITATION:
Have you ever thought about some of the reasons we give thanks
to the Lord? Two of the reasons we are thankful are, (1) because
He is good, and, (2) because He has an enduring love for us.
When thinking about all the friends you have, how many of them
would you classify as good with an enduring love? They may be
very good friends who love you, but their love might be conditional.
In other words, some people will be our friends until we do something
that offends them and then everything changes.
Or, their friendship may change if they feel you are not returning
their love in the same proportion as they are giving theirs to you.
Have you ever felt that way toward one of your friends?
You feel that you are often showing love toward them (checking on
them, asking if they have any special prayer requests, doing special
things for them without expecting anything in return, etc.), but they
seem to only respond with love when you have shown them love in
some way?
It can be a challenge to continue loving them at the same level, can’t
it? But God helps you, by reminding you that He continues to love
you, even if your love for Him isn’t as strong as His love for you. In
the Bible, we are told to develop a greater love for others. Here are
a few examples:
Do to others as you would have them do to you.
(Luke 6:31)
But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them
without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward
will be great, and you will be children of the Most High,
because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.
(Luke 6:35)
Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather,
in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to
your own interests but each of you to the interests of the
others.
(Philippians 2:3-4)
And do not forget to do good and to share with others,
for with such sacrifices God is pleased.
(Hebrews 13:16)
We should cherish those friends who love us at all times. It is
a blessing to have friends who are honest enough with us to
tell us things we need to be aware of, but may not enjoy hearing.
We should understand the sincerity of their concerns for us, and
realize that God may very well be communicating to us through
them.
Rather than being resentful or offended, we should be reminded
that their love for us has given them the courage to tell us things
they probably feel uncomfortable saying.
I believe that God places special people in our lives to be our sentinels
(aka watchman, which is one who warns someone as God directs them).
As God’s sentinel we have some responsibilities, and we report to the
One who assigned us this position.
But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does
not blow the trumpet to warn the people and the sword
comes and takes someone’s life, that person’s life will
be taken because of their sin, but I will hold the watchman
accountable for their blood.’
(Ezekiel 33:6)
Isn’t it great to be able to worship a God who has a love that is not
conditional? God’s love is unconditional because He is good through
and through…always. God loves us whether we love Him back or not.
That doesn’t mean He is happy when we are disobedient and sin against
Him.
As part of His love for us, God is still a disciplinarian. Why would He
discipline us? It is because He loves us and wants what is best for us.
Due to His love for us, He sometimes uses discipline to help us become
a little more like His Son, Jesus (it is part of His sanctification of us).
We can give thanks to Him for keeping those in His family on a
“short leash”. When we are tempted to become disobedient to His
commands, we can feel His loving tug on our leash and know we
are venturing outside the boundaries He has established for us.
Have you ever taken a dog for a walk with a leash? Did you notice how
much the dog wants to explore all along the way? However, when he gets
into areas where he should not be, we give a tug on his leash. How does
he respond? Does he growl and show his displeasure for our restrictions?
No. Usually he or she just bounces back to where they should be and seem
to have an attitude of, “Oh, okay, I’ll get back over here. I’m just happy to be
walking with you!” There are times when they can be so overly attracted to
something that it requires more than just a gentle tug to get their attention
and bring them back to where they should be.
What is your attitude when God gives you a gentle (or strong) tug on
your leash? How do you respond to God’s guidance? Do you resent it,
or are you happy just to be walking with Him? Are you glad when you
feel Him tugging at your heart, or do you try to break free from your
leash?
Does it frighten you whenever you start to yield to temptations and
cannot feel His tug? When we are part of His family, God wants us
to be fully surrendered.
We know that God loves us, but do we love Him in return? Does
He expect us to show our love for Him? According to His Word,
the answer is “Yes”.
Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father,
you would love me, for I have come here from
God. I have not come on my own; God sent me.
(John 8:42)
“If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask
the Father, and he will give you another advocate
to help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of
truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither
sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives
with you and will be in you.
(John 14:15-17)
Jesus gives us these two examples for measuring our love of God.
He says that if God is our heavenly Father, then we will love Him
(Jesus). He also tells us that if we truly love Him, we will obey His
commands.
Some however, consider His commands as a kind of buffet, where
they can choose which of His commands they will obey, and which
ones they will avoid because they infringe on their personal choices.
When Jesus says love is expressed through obedience, He is referring
to ALL of God’s commands, and not just the ones we have chosen that
fit our lifestyle and preference. God reads the desires of our hearts and
He knows when we want to obey His commands, but fail at times when
we stray too far from Him. He also knows when we choose to disobey
some of His commands.
One last observance of the message to us from Jesus:
He tells us that when we show our love by obeying
all of His commands, He will “ask the Father to give
us another advocate (Holy Spirit) to help us and be
with us forever”.
It sounds like Jesus is giving us an example of “cause and effect”.
If we want the Holy Spirit to “live with us and be in us”, then we
need to show our love for Jesus by obeying His commands.
One day of the year (Thanksgiving) has been designated as a time to pause
and reflect on how the Lord has blessed us in many ways. Of course, that
doesn’t preclude us from being thankful every day of our lives, and to
show our gratitude not just in what we say, but also in what we do.
Our gratitude should be reflected in our desire to live a life that is more
unselfish and more devoted and dedicated to our Lord and Savior, Jesus
Christ.
As we enjoy the comforts of our homes, we need to remember that
there are many in the world with no home to go to. When we enjoy
our meals, we should not forget that a great number of people will
go to bed hungry. When we sit behind the wheel of our automobile,
we need to remember there are people in the world who cannot
afford a car, or even a bicycle.
In the prayer example Jesus gave us, He included,
“Give us this day our daily bread.”
(Matthew 6:11)
It reminds us that the good things of this life are gifts from God.
We should be humble and constantly thank God for the blessings
He has given us (material and spiritual).
ACTION:
How much do you appreciate God’s love for you? Do you show
your love for Him in return, by obeying His commands? Have
you established your own list of God’s commands that you will
obey, or have you chosen to humbly obey all His commands?
How do you respond to the gentle (or strong) tugs you feel from
the Lord? Do His ‘tugs’ convict you of your disobedience, or do
you ignore them and try to justify your actions? Is the Holy Spirit
active in your life, or have you been suppressing His activity?
Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for providing for me on
a daily basis. May my heart be fully consecrated to
Your Son, Jesus Christ. I want to live a life that shows
You (and others) that I truly love You and am thankful
of Your love for me. You tell me that I show my love for
You when I obey Your commands. Reveal to me any areas
where I have allowed my personal selfishness to replace
my obedience to Your commands. Make me feel guilty for
any actions of mine that are not pleasing to You. During
those times when I am weak and succumb to temptations,
create in me a repentant heart that wants to run to You,
and spend more time in fellowship with You. Forgive me
if I have chosen to justify my disobedience to any of Your
commands. Help me to be aware of Your presence in my
life, and to express my love to You in the way You have me
(and not by my own concepts of how I should show my love
for You). Guide me in fulfilling my desire to point others to
You. Everything I have materially and spiritually are gifts
from You and I am forever grateful of Your love for me and
the blessings You have given me.”
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