—————————————————————————————————————–

In a marriage counseling support group meeting, the leader asked attendees around, “Do you have anything that you would like to thank, today?”  The room was silent. He surveyed the room to see if there is any volunteer. All he sees were blank faces and heads down. Suddenly a person popped a word, “I would like to give thanks”.  The leader was pleased and felt relief. Then the person said, “I am thanking for that I can attend this group of “quiet persons” because I have had enough at my house.” A burst of laughs rises in the room.

There is always something that we can thank for even sometimes, we don’t feel like to do so. Someone said, “Thanksgiving is an attitude and a life style even when time is difficult”. No wonder James indicated to us that “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds我的弟兄們 ，你們落在百般試煉中，都要以為大喜樂(James 1:2)” Apostle Paul also told us that “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 應當一無掛慮 ，只要凡事藉著禱告、祈求，和感謝，將你們所要的告訴神 。(Philippians 4:6)” Apostle Paul’s teaching enlightened us that we should not be anxious about anything because God granted us a privilege to access Him with one condition: we need to carry an attitude of thanksgiving when we plead to Him.

In the Gospel of Luke, we read the scene of Jesus was welcomed to the city of Jerusalem as King – People spread their cloaks on the road. The whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen. (Luke 19:36-37). However, some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!” Do you know what Jesus’ response was? He replied, “I tell you, if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out. 耶穌說：我告訴你們，若是他們閉口不說，這些石頭必要呼叫起來。(Luke 19:40)” This is a powerful message to us, as Christians.  We need to offer our praise and thanks whenever we can.

Yesterday we had a great Thanksgiving celebration. A lot of friends and families joined our gathering. The greatest joy, to me, is to see so many kids came to give thanks in front of everyone. John Clayton once said, “Christians were instructed to serve others, and the thanksgiving was for the grace of God and the fact that God offered a way for man to return to a positive relationship with Him.” I believe most of us would be delighted to see our own kids having an attitude of thanksgiving and this would lead them to have a positive relationship with God in the future. After the testimonials session, we enjoyed a great dinner and fellowship together. We saw a lot of new faces and old friends in our midst. It is just like a family!

My dear brothers and sisters, in this thanksgiving season, we not only need to learn how to give thanks but also need to learn how to serve others. It is my prayer that each one of us would have a serving heart and a thanksgiving attitude toward our journey of faith.