Give thanks!

Have you ever commanded someone to give thanks?
Maybe your child seemingly didn’t appreciate all the
comforts that you had provided for his life; maybe you
served some strangers in trouble and expected a bit more
gratefulness from their attitude.
You can get a person to perform the ritual of thanksgiving,
but you cannot create a grateful heart by commandments.
That’s why genuine thanksgiving is so powerful.
The higher expressions of human life such as faith, obedience,
worship, love and thanksgiving are possible
only by a personal choice.
They cannot be manufactured or tricked into by commandments
and rules.
Unconditional love is sometimes really hard to choose,
but it also serves as a defense for our soul’s welfare.
If we don’t expect anything in return, every thankful word
and a grateful attitude comes as a bonus blessing to our lives.
Even though God has always existed unchanged, he continues
to choose love and to forgive. He has a relationship with us,
not just a mechanical program.
Sin cannot stop him. Satan cannot.
Human failure cannot diminish the power of his love.
Pastor Schaller said in his Thanksgiving message, that if I were
surrounded by five thousand hungry people, I would be ready
to complain about my five loaves of bread and two fish.
Jesus gave thanks and blessed the multitudes.
“I have loved you with an everlasting love,
therefore with loving kindness I have drawn you.” Jeremiah 31:3