A CONFESSION OF THANKSGIVING -- Devotional for November 25, from "Good Seeds"

In everything give thanks, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. (I Thessalonians 5:18)

“Lord, today I would like to make a confession of thanksgiving….” So began the prayer I heard at a public meeting recently. I was intrigued by the phrase, “confession of thanksgiving.” Usually our statements of gratitude come with positive and joyful affirmation, not with an implied admission of guilt. Regarding thanksgiving, what’s there to confess? Well, I was soon to find out, for this is what followed: “I’m ashamed to confess, Lord, how easy it is to thank You for my family and friends.” And in our “I’m thankful for…” time around the table after the Thanksgiving feast others may add their gratitude for the precious freedoms we enjoy and the blessing of dwelling in safety and comfort. “O Lord, thank You for giving us all of our needs – and most of our wants!” Confession #1: Thanking God FOR the good things, as reflected in the old hymn, “Count your many blessings, name them one by one.” Just because it is easy to do this doesn’t mean it is not important. Certainly it is right to acknowledge all the good that comes our way, and bow to the One responsible for it. But having done so, are we done? Is our thanksgiving confession complete? Not by a long shot! Look at the verse again…. Does it say, “For good things give thanks”? No, but rather, “In all things give thanks” – which brings us to Confession #2: Thanking God IN the hard things. I must confess that it is not so easy to thank God when I’m going through tough stuff. The fragrant flowers along life’s pathway bring joy to our hearts, but what are we to do about the weeds and thorns, the rocks and roadblocks? These are the pain, distress, and disappointment that we deal with daily. We are not told to thank God FOR them, but by His grace we can thank Him IN them – for He goes with us THROUGH them, and brings us out the other side better people BECAUSE of them. Surely this is what Andrae Crouch meant when he wrote: “I thank God for the mountains, and I thank Him for the valleys; and I thank Him for the storms He’s brought me through; for if I never had a problem I’d never know that He could solve them, I’d never know what faith in God could do. Through it all, through it all, I’ve learned to trust in Jesus, I’ve learned to trust in God.” And so our confession of thanksgiving continues: “Oh God, on this beautiful Thanksgiving Day, I will thank You for the treats, for sure, for they encourage my heart – but for the trials, too, for they strengthen my faith, even as they build my character. And if the rare moments of splendor give me a glimpse of heaven, and draw me closer there, still it is the daily struggle with unpleasant circumstances that show me heaven’s God, and draws me into His care.