The Lord doesn’t expect anything of us that He Himself is not willing to do for us. The psalmist wrote “The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their cry” (Psa. 34:15). God’s eyes are on those who focus upon Him; His ears are open to those who pray to Him. God practices “the golden rule” by treating us the way He wants us to treat Him.
Jesus condemned the Jews: “For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, Lest they should see with their eyes & hear with their ears, Lest they should understand with their hearts & turn, So that I should heal them” (Matt. 13:15). If we desire for God’s eyes to be upon, us we must put forth a diligent effort to fix our spiritual eyes of faith upon Him. If we want His ears to be open to our prayers, we must open our spiritual ears of faith to His word of truth. If our hearts are “dull” & not focused upon Him, we can hardly expect Him to touch our hearts with His love, peace, joy and wisdom.
This principle applies to thanksgiving. We do not ordinarily think of God as being thankful. After all, He’s God, so why would He be thankful? The psalmist speaks of God’s thanksgiving: “His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor his delight in the legs of a man; the LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love” (Psa. 147:10-11).
God IS God and doesn’t need anybody or anything. No “worldly power” impresses Him. However, something does impress God; something does delight Him for which He is thankful. God is thankful for those who fear Him. He is thankful for those who put their hope in His unfailing love. God is so thankful for spiritually minded people that He seeks to reward them for: “the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him (2 Chron. 16:9).” That my God is a thankful God implies we can all do something that fills Him with the joy of thanksgiving. Just as His numerous blessings fill our hearts with thanksgiving, we can fill His heart with thanksgiving by attitudes of reverence toward Him. He doesn’t ask of us what He Himself is not willing to do toward us!
When you sit down with your family to eat your thanksgiving meal, hopefully your family will take time to reflect upon what they are thankful for. As you count your blessings, picture the Lord Jesus thinking about you in heaven and leaning over to one His angels to say: “I’m thankful for that man there and that woman over there who delights me.” Jesus declared: “I say to you, whoever confesses Me before men, him the Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God” (Luke 12:8).
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Every time, you and I brag about Jesus; every time you and I praise His holy name Jesus gives thanks. Because we belong to Him; because we fear Him above anything in this world; because we love Him above all, we place all our hope in His unfailing love and strive to tell others about Him.
Joseph Hayden was a great church music composer of his day, but not everybody appreciated his music. When he wrote his music, some church members complained because it was “too joyful” and didn’t reflect the reverence and “stern holiness” they believed God wanted. But Hayden rightly understood that wasn’t what God wanted at all. “I cannot help it. I give forth what is in me. When I think of the Divine Being, my heart is so full of joy that the notes fly off as from a spindle. And as I have a cheerful heart, He will pardon me if I serve Him cheerfully.”
Thanksgiving is a national holiday that reminds us that Christians are a thankful and joyful people because we serve a thankful and joyful God!
Ralph Weinhold; Danville, AR