I hope everyone had a blessed day on Thanksgiving! I was able to serve our community at the annual event at Thomasville High. I was with family in the late afternoon and so I was able to give lots of thanksgiving throughout the day!

Did you know that Thanksgiving is connected to the Lord’s Supper or Communion? I am borrowing some thoughts from a man and ministry I have known for years and highly value his insights. Dutch Sheets shared several things I had not heard (or remember hearing) before this past week.

The word Grace is translated from a word that also means “goodwill, loving-kindness, or favor” and can also be translated “thanks”. Wuest’s Word Studies from the Greek New Testament defines this word grace (charis) as the “spontaneous act of God that came from the infinite love in His heart, in which He stepped down from His judgment throne to take upon Himself the guilt and penalty of human sin, thus satisfying His justice, maintaining His government, and making possible the bestowal of salvation upon the sinner who receives it by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ who became a Sin-offering for him on the Cross.” Oh my goodness. That is profound and I need to meditate on that for a while.

Interestingly, several related Greek words that mean “to give graciously” or a “gift that is graciously given” are also important to understand. This includes the 1 Corinthians 12 spiritual gifts that Paul mentions. They are “gifts of God’s grace, not developed through natural talent but rather bestowed upon believers by God”. It is also used in Ephesians 1:6 when describing the great favor granted to us as believers. “Christ in me” (Col.1:27) – He is in us – in our spiritual wombs so to speak, the same way Mary carried Him in her natural womb. It is the same Greek word used in both descriptions! Mary was “highly favored” (charitoo) and so are we!

Now, here is what I discovered this week. Charis is also the root word for Thanksgiving. It is from the Greek word eucharistia meaning the giving of thanks or giving thanks for our grace gifts. “When America set aside a day of public Thanksgiving and Prayer to Almighty God (George Washington’s proclamation) it was to thank God for the physical freedom, prosperity, and abundance we enjoy in this great nation; we are acknowledging that we enjoy these things because of the grace of God and the gift of His Son!” Now here is the amazing observation Dr. Sheets shared – “the Greek word for Thanksgiving (eucharistia) is also the word for Eucharist, the Lord’s Table or Communion (not just the word used by the Catholic church but also by many evangelical churches). Jesus used this very word when initiating the meal: “when He had given thanks” and then gave His disciples the bread and wine. (1 Cor.11:23-25). Thanksgiving originated at the Last Supper, when God’s grace meal was inaugurated!” (from Dutch Sheets Give Him 15 November 21, 2023)

I don’t think I will ever celebrate Thanksgiving in quite the same way, now that I understand how powerful the truths of what God has made available to us. Yes, I will continue to serve our community and be grateful for the privilege to represent the love of God to many who have yet to come to know Him as the loving, kind, generous God who poured it all out for us on Calvary. And, yes, I love being with my natural family as we share a meal and time of fellowship together, but I also realize just a little bit more what God has provided for us. His amazing grace is something we sing about regularly but to realize just how powerful His grace gift is to each of us is something I think will continue to unfold throughout all of eternity!

I believe it is pretty much an impossibility to have a thankful heart and at the same time complain and judge our current set of circumstances. I know that many people are struggling this week – with health issues, financial lack, relationship problems, lack of direction and many other negative situations. However, going through those challenging situations with a thankful heart can make all the difference on how the outcome affects how well you move forward beyond the challenge you may be facing.

Thankfulness is something we are exhorted in the scriptures to do, no matter what the actual circumstances are. “In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (1 Thess. 5:18) Sometimes that is not easy to do when adverse circumstances seem to call for a response contrary to that exhortation. I know that if I am aware of the choice I can make and choose to be thankful, it changes everything. I don’t always pass this test because I become frustrated or angry or critical before I stop to think and then my emotions can lead the way rather than my spirit man. I am usually quick to repent because I hate the way unthankfulness makes me feel and some unwise actions that have come as a result of me yielding to some of the negative emotions that come up rather quickly during adverse circumstances.

I have stated before that I keep a reminder on my phone so that at 10:30 every morning I see the question – “what are you thankful for today?” Sometimes I have more time to answer and ponder that question and sometimes it is a very quick refocusing of my heart – to be thankful! It is one of the best “habits” I have developed and is just part of my daily life – not just at 10:30 every morning either – many times during the day I can just pause to thank the Lord for whatever comes to mind.

I want to encourage you as our focus now changes to the Christmas season and all of the activities that go along with this time of the year. I am grateful that our focus going into this season is one of giving thanks. I am so thankful that many of us will celebrate this season knowing that “Jesus is the reason for the season”. God became Immanuel, God with us. He came as a baby in the womb of a very young virgin who had said to the angel “Be it unto me according to your word”. May we be so willing to allow Christ to be formed in us, through the new birth and let Him manifest His life in and through us.