Saturday – Open Topic
Reading – 1 Thessalonians 5:12-28
Highlight Verses:
“Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.”
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NLT
Yes, I know it is Halloween today. Since I already mentioned it in at least two of the devotions this past month and many people read this later, I decided to move on to something I believe is important enough to dwell on for the whole next month.
Thankfulness.
If you are reading this in a country that does not have a Thanksgiving Day, it would be a great tradition to start.
For those of us in the US and Canada, it would be a good thing to remember to give thanks on more than just Thanksgiving Day.
For many, the day has become nothing more than a family gathering to eat and watch parades and football.
Paul makes it clear that it is God’s will that we should be thankful in every circumstance.
He plants that sage advice in the middle of several important commands and advice to the Thessalonians.
It is worthy of taking seriously.
I dare say that thankfulness is essential to the other commands in this chapter.
It certainly helps with being joyful.
It is integral to praying continuously.
Lack of thankfulness can stifle the Holy Spirit.
In light of this, let’s start out the month of thankfulness by sharing one thing we are thankful for each day in November.
I’ll start early here at the end of October by saying I am thankful for my family. I have been blessed with a wife and four children (now adults) and a large extended family – a whole troop to care about and be cared by.
What will you start out the month thanking God for?
How will you express your thankfulness this next month to God and to others?
