Newsletter Essay:  April

As Easter is fast approaching, I could not help thinking that as believing Christians, we are blessed beyond measure.  God sent His only Son to die for our sins.  And God has given us the priceless gifts of eternal love and eternal life.  We, in turn, are instructed to approach our Heavenly Father with reverence and thanksgiving.  But sometimes, in the crush of everyday living, we simply do not stop long enough to pause and thank our Creator for the countless blessings He has bestowed upon us.

          When we slow down and express our gratitude to the One who made us, we enrich our own lives and the lives of those around us.  That’s why thanksgiving should become a habit, a regular part of our daily routines.  God has blessed us beyond measure, and we owe Him everything, including our eternal praise.

God’s Word makes it clear: a wise heart is a thankful heart.  Period.  We are to worship God, in part, by the genuine gratitude we feel in our hearts for the marvelous blessings that our Creator has bestowed upon us.  Yet, even the most saintly among us must endure periods of bitterness, fear, doubt, and regret.  Why?  Because we are imperfect human beings who are incapable of perfect gratitude.  Still, even on life’s darker days, we must seek to cleanse our hearts of negative emotions and fill them, instead, with praise, with love, with hope, and with thanksgiving.  To do otherwise is to be unfair to ourselves, to our loved ones, and to our God. 

Have you established the habit of thanking God early and often?  Do you appreciate the gifts that your Heavenly Father has given you? And do you demonstrate your gratitude by being a faithful steward of the gifts and talents that you have received from your Creator?  You most certainly should be thankful.  After all, when you stop to think about it, God has given you more blessings than you can count.  So, the question of the day is this: will you thank your heavenly Father....or will you spend your time and energy doing other things? 

God is always listening - are you willing to say thanks?  It is up to you, and the next move is yours.  “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift”  (II Corinthians 9:15).   Let us follow in Christ’s footsteps today and every day that we live.  So when our work here is done, we may live with You forever.

                                                                     Have a blessed day,

John