(pastor notes) Thankfulness: Protecting what is Good, Right and True

We are going to be celebrating thanksgiving soon. In a couple weeks we will all be sitting down with family and most likely eating way more than we should, laughing together, maybe watching old movies, taking involuntary family naps. but most of all we will be thanking God for his goodness and provision. But here’s a question……..

Question: How can you be thankful for something that you have no knowledge of? Imagine If you have been lied to about your origins, your history and present reality? if you had been taught that America was an evil nation built on slavery and White Christian supremacism? And that these Christians are presently oppressing all other groups of people. and you have learned to view everything through the lens of racism and the only way forward is to seize power at any cost even a violent overthrow of the current system if necessary . That overarching narrative is what has been taught at all levels of our education system nationally for the last 17 years either directly or at least implied. and it has influence every institution. legal, political, medical ect.

I believe this is one of the reasons we are seeing such a divide in our country. This is why we are struggling to find shared values and common sense and why many of our people have turned away from God, away from church and have turned to false religions and debunked outdated political ideas like socialism.

This always happens when the church falls asleep at the wheel. its not like we weren’t warned. consider what Paul said:

Colossians 2:8 (NLT) 
8 Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. 

But one thing always seems to bring us back. when we begin to remember and be thankful.

Why do I say this? Consider Israel. They had gone astray on more than one occasion, but whenever they turned back to God and remembered How God had provided for them, it spurred national repentance.  and they expressed this repentance in a heart of thanksgiving. they continually thank God for what he has done.

I think if the church wants to be the bright light in our culture that points the way to Christ.  if we are going to preserve what is Good Right and True in our society We need to be a people that are loving and gentle and known for thankfulness.

How do we do that?

1. A Thankful Mindset is rooted in Christ and the Truth of his Word– consider the previous verse in Colossians about not being deceived by worldly thinking. here is the verse before it.

Colossians 2:7 (NLT) 
7 Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. 

• Two things every Christian should have knowledge in.
  • The Bible- to know God and his relationship with us his creation.
  • History- which is a record of both the helpful and the dumb things we have done.

2. A Thankful mindset keeps us going even through the hard times

1 Thessalonians 5:16–18 (NLT) 
16 Always be joyful. 17 Never stop praying. 18 Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. 

Imagine stepping onto a small wooden ship with no guarantee you’d ever see land again. That was the Mayflower in 1620—102 believers risking everything, not for adventure, but for the freedom to worship God according to His Word.

Their first winter in America was brutal. Half of them died. Many were buried in unmarked graves so nearby tribes wouldn’t know how weak the colony was. Yet even in their suffering, they prayed, worshiped, and trusted that God had brought them there.

Then God sent help in the most unexpected way. A Native American named Squanto—who spoke English—taught them how to survive in this new land. Governor William Bradford said Squanto was “a special instrument sent of God.”

And when the harvest finally came, the Pilgrims didn’t throw a feast because everything was perfect—they gave thanks because God had carried them through what they could not survive alone. For three days they worshiped, ate, laughed, and celebrated with the Wampanoag people who helped keep them alive.

The first Thanksgiving wasn’t about comfort—it was about gratitude in the middle of hardship.
And that’s still what Thanksgiving really is.

I pray that when we celebrate this thanksgiving that we will consider all that God has brought us through and the blessings that he has brought. I know I will. God has brought us through a lot this year. but thankfulness does one other thing

3. A Thankful mindset trusts in God for deliverance from evil.

Psalm 44:6–8 (NLT)
6 I do not trust in my bow;
I do not count on my sword to save me.
7 You are the one who gives us victory over our enemies;
you disgrace those who hate us.
8 O God, we give glory to you all day long
and constantly praise your name.
Interlude

No matter the threats, the lies or the persecution aimed at us we do not battle as the world does. our strength is found in Christ Alone. Keep being thankful, keep praying, Keep establishing yourself in God’s Word and he will be your deliverer.