With Thanksgiving

It is now just about a week until Thanksgiving - that uniquely American holiday. And it reminds me of a scripture: Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. (Phil. 4:6, NIV). It is but one of the many verses where we are told to give thanks to God. But this one is in the context of prayer requests. And I remember some of the discussions I have heard about just what this means. Do we thank God for what has happened? But if we have needs, doesn't that imply that God my have actually caused the need? And, would God do that? On the other hand, should we thank God that we can take our needs to Him? But does that mean that we don't trust that God may have had a reason for the need we are now presenting? After many decades of ministry experience, I think I may finally have the answer: Just say "thank you, Lord." We do not have to understand everything. I suspect that much of what we think we do understand we are probably wrong about, anyway. So just say, "Thanks!" God will figure out the rest. Because the truth is, I am thankful. For everything. Especially for the privilege of taking my needs to God and knowing that He listens and, yes, answers my prayers. Have a good Thanksgiving! Eat some turkey for me!

Pastor Ken