Don’t worry. I will not traumatize you with my list of 39 reasons. But I’ve given three reasons below that I think are more than worthy of mention.
Recently, Rosemary and I returned from a special trip to Cambodia to visit with our son, Sam and his great wife, Yein, and their newborn daughter, Nora – grandchild number 7. See two pictures on the attachment.
The trip was a gift from some amazingly generous people at Crosstown Church. To say the very least, we were and remain very thankful!
While there Rosemary and I celebrated our 39th wedding anniversary and I decided to compile a list of 39 reasons I am thankful for my wife. That’s what gave rise to the title above. It is also what prompted me to write a completely different list for this Thanksgiving. Here are three of the thirty-nine reasons I am thankful.
First, I am most thankful for God’s gift of Jesus Christ in my life! Without him I am a lost human being. Really lost! And hopeless! His death on the cross followed by his resurrection from the dead to redeem me (and you) is a source of inexhaustible thanks. The simple words thank you do not seem sufficient enough for the whole and complete package of the gift of Jesus. It is for this reason that I daily offer my life unto HIM. Why not take a moment right now to read aloud the following verses from Romans 12:1-2 and in reading it present yourself to HIM today.
And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God.
Let them be a living and holy sacrifice – the kind he will accept.
When you think of what he has done for you, is this too much to ask?
Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let
God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.
Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you
will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is.
I am also thankful for the United States of America. There’s no doubt that the overall outlook of our nation is bleak. Our culture has been decaying for decades. Our values and moral standards have eroded to new lows and faith in God is routinely ridiculed. However, I am still thankful for America.
It is tempting to believe we’ve reached the point of no return but we must keep in mind that God cares for this nation. With HIM, nothing is impossible.
Would you pray for our nation today? “Water,” with thankfulness, the wonderful godly root system that our forefathers planted. Let’s not chop the tree of America down but instead water its root. Please don’t forget how our nation was begun . . . planted. There is great power in the spirit of thankfulness. Just remember Jesus’ blessing to the one leper who was thankful.(1)
Being grateful for our nation reminds me of a story.
A dog walked to the butcher counter in a supermarket with a wallet in its mouth. He placed the wallet on the counter and sat in front of the meat case. The butcher was perplexed at what to do so he asked the dog, “Hey boy, you want to buy some steak?” The dog barked affirmatively. So playing along with the dog the butcher asks; “How much? Half a pound, one pound, two . . .?” The dog barked when he got to two pounds. The astonished butcher wrapped up two pounds of rib eye steak and proceeded to look in the wallet. There was enough money to cover the cost so he rang up the bill and taped the receipt to the meat package. The dog grabbed the wallet and meat and was gone.
The butcher was so amazed that he decided to follow the dog out the store and down the street to an apartment building. The dog climbed the stairs to the second floor and began scratching at a door. The door swung open with an angry man cussing at the dog.
“Hey mister,” the butcher says, “stop cussing at the dog. Your dog is the smartest dog I’ve ever seen!”
“Smart???” yells the man. “This is the third time this week that stupid dog has forgotten the key.”
It’s easy to forget the many blessings we have in our country. Believe me, there’s still no better place on earth.. Let’s be grateful . . . and let’s pray for America. GOD BLESS AMERICA!
This Thanksgiving I am also thankful for you, our Crosstown Church family and the many friends who are our faithful prayer warriors, partners and supporters. Thank you for encouraging us and believing we can make a difference for Jesus’ sake in the Conejo Valley . . . and with discouraged and struggling pastors . . . and with ministry in various places around the world . . . like Cambodia, Cuba and . . . France – more about that soon!
Happy Thanksgiving to you! May you bask in God’s great grace during this wonderful holiday.
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!
His faithful love endures forever.
Has the Lord redeemed you? Then speak out!
Tell others he has saved you from your enemies.(2)
With gratitude!
–John
(1) Luke 17:17-19
(2) Psalm 107:1-2 NLT