“In All Things, Give Thanks!”

Pastor Jim Lowe III

Sunday Morning,  9:30am Stream

11/06/22 (1st Sunday Message)

 

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{All scriptures are NIV84 unless stated}

 

 

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

16 Be joyful always; 17 pray continually; 18 give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

 

Be joyful always.

 

Pray continually.

 

Give thanks in all circumstances.

 

This is God’s will for you.

 

Give THANKS in all circumstances.

 

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (MSG)

Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live.

 

This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ to live!

 

Thank God no matter what happens.

 

Today’s Title:

In All Things, Give Thanks!

 

We have a holiday in November.

 

It’s a time to bring family together.

 

Where we talk about the things we’re thankful for.

 

It’s a time of reflection where we come together to say things we may not normally say.

 

To show a form of love and gratefulness to others.

 

But this is something we get an opportunity to do once a year.

 

1 Thessalonians is telling us to give thanks in all circumstances.

 

To continue to give praise to God.

 

The way we’re supposed to live!

 

Our God Is Worthy Of Our Thanksgiving!

 

Psalm 107:1

1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.

 

This is saying that we should give thanks to God.

 

For he is good!

 

Meaning he HAS been good to us…

 

And because his love endures forever…

 

he will CONTINUE to be good to us!

 

The fact we are still here should be a constant reminder that God loves us!

 

We Are A Living Testament To God’s Love!

 

This month we will be talking about things we should be thankful to God for.

 

Not just THIS month, but at ALL times!

 

 What does giving thanks do for us?

 

Giving Thanks To God Puts You In His Presence!

 

Psalm 100:4-5

4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. 5 For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

 

Enter his gates with thanksgiving.

 

Enter his courts with praise.

 

This is saying that if you want to enter his gates…you have to bring thanks!

 

God doesn’t just let anyone in his presence.

 

Especially ungrateful people…

 

This says to see God you have to be thankful.

 

If You Want To See God Act On Your Behalf, You Have To Show You’re Thankful For What He’s Already Done!

 

We have to remember God is not obligated to do anything for us.

 

He does it because he loves us.

 

How quick are we to do something for someone who never says thank you?

 

Ever gone out of your way for someone for them to later make you feel like you owed them that?

 

Like you were supposed to do that for them?

 

Doesn’t that make you less likely to do something for them again?

 

God Might Not Be Answering Some Of Our Prayers Because We Have Been Ungrateful!

 

This is why we’re taught to start our prayers with giving thanks and praise to God!

 

Thanksgiving gets you in God’s presence.

 

Psalm 95:2-3

2 Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song. 3 For the Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods.

 

Many of these Psalms were written by David.

 

There are many more that talk about giving thanks and how it leads you to God.

 

David was a man “after God’s own heart.”

 

You’d think this man could tell you how to get into the presence of God!

 

Let’s talk about 3 different areas we can give thanks to God.

 

1. Giving Thanks To God For Our Inner Being

2. Giving Thanks To God For Our Outer World

3. Giving Thanks To God For His Love

 

We will talk about those over the next few weeks.

 

Starting with our Inner Being.

 

1. Our Inner Being

 

Our Inner Being is everything that makes us up as an individual.

 

The things that make us up as a person.

 

These are the things we can and SHOULD be giving thanks for AT ALL TIMES.

 

Giving Thanks To God For Our Inner Being:

1. God Is Our Healer

2. God Is Our Protector

3. God Is Our Restorer

 

 

 

 

All 3 of these things are things we should be giving thanks for.

 

We can all remember SOMETHING God has healed and protected us from.

 

Did we stop thanking God for that when it was over?

 

 - the scary movie where the person prays the bad guy doesn’t see them…and     when they don’t…the person doesn’t even say “thank you?”  Or never again     after?

 

What’s the bible say about our God being a healer?

 

Jeremiah 33:6

6 “ ‘Nevertheless, I will bring health and healing to it; I will heal my people and will let them enjoy abundant peace and security.

 

We see our God as “a God who heals.”

 

He can heal his people.

 

He is capable…

 

But not ONLY to heal…but for them to enjoy abundant (overflowing) peace and security.

 

Many of us have had sicknesses…COVID…flu…sinus/respiratory infections…various forms of cancer…and God has brought us out!

 

Thank God For Healing You From The Things That Have Tried To Attack You Physically!

 

Do we still continue to pray and thank God for those things??

 

In All Things, Give Thanks!

 

What are some other things we can thank him about??

 

Exodus 15:26

26 He said, “If you listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you.”

 

God is saying that he is the God that heals.

 

He’s not only capable of healing…he can prevent also!

 

He can protect!

 

He can BLOCK!

 

God said he would not bring any of the diseases that the Egyptians got.

 

Have You Thanked God Today For Protecting You?

 

No the day isn’t over…but you’ve made it this far!

 

The Day May Not Be Perfect, But God Has Protected You From Something!  Give Thanks!

 

We can sometimes let the small stuff distract us from the bigger picture.

 

There are people sick all around you…and many of you are doing just fine.

 

God kept you!

 

If you ARE sick, you don’t realize that death tried to come for you the other day…

 

God kept you!  And He’s gonna heal you!

 

Don’t Let The Small Stuff Keep You From Seeing How Amazing God Has Been To You!  Give Thanks!

 

How about God being our restorer?

 

Psalm 23:1-3

1 The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 3 he restores my soul.

 

He RESTORES…

 

He gives me these things…green pastures…quiet waters…

 

PEACE AND QUIET…

 

And in that…He restores me.

 

He makes me like brand new.

 

If You’re Trying To Find Relief From All The Stress Of Life, Ask God To Restore You!

 

Psalm 23 talks about God being a shepherd to provide the things you need.

 

(upcoming podcast episode…Don’t Worry, God Is Your Shepherd) It will be on in a few weeks.

 

Jeremiah 30:17

17 But I will restore you to health and heal your wounds,’ declares the Lord,

 

God is saying that he can restore to full health.

 

But he can also heal your wounds.

 

Doesn’t restore to full health mean heal wounds?

 

There are some wounds we don’t wear on the outside.

 

There are things that God is saying require more than just a physical healing.

 

We might have pain on the outside…

 

But we also have trauma on the inside…

 

God is saying he can take care of all of that!

 

Let’s Be Thankful Because God Has Healed Us From Some Of The Mental Bondage We’ve Been In!

 

Many times our bodies heal before our minds do.

 

This means that God can take care of the total healing.

 

God can heal you…

 

but he can also take away the negative things that come with it.

 

God Can Heal You From The Impact Of Those Words Spoken Against You!

 

We give thanks because God is a healer!

 

God Can Heal You From The Impact Of Those Things Others Have Done To You!

 

Many of us may never know…but God knows…

 

And God can restore you to brand new.

 

{recap}

 

In all things we should give thanks.

 

God is worthy of it.

 

He is good…

 

His love endures forever.

 

We talked about our Inner Being and how we can give thanks to God for taking care of that.

 

Giving Thanks To God For Our Inner Being:

1. God Is Our Healer

2. God Is Our Protector

3. God Is Our Restorer

 

God heals…

 

He protects…

 

He restores…

 

Giving thanks to God GETS us in his presence…

 

This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ to live!

 

It shows we are grateful for his goodness to us.

 

If You Haven’t Said It Today, “God Thank You!”