Thanksgiving is a great day to remember just how good God is to us. Regardless of out situations, whether we are having a good time or not, God continues to be good. And because He is good, there's always something to be thankful for.
Truth be told, there are countries that don't celebrate Thanksgiving day. It's not in their calendars. One thing that we all need to realize, though, is that it doesn't have to be in our calendars. It has to be in our hearts.
That said, here are some things every Christian around the world should be thankful for, especially this Thanksgiving.
1) The opportunity to reconcile with God through Christ
We should always be grateful to God for what He has done. Sin separated all of us from God, but God kept pursuing us. He gave us the way to be able to return to Him. Not through what we can do, but what we cannot do.
John 3:16 tells us that "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."
The only begotten Son, Jesus, is the only way. He said in John 14:6, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."
Little did we know that God was in the rescue mission. 2 Corinthians 5:19 tells us "that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation."
He Himself provided the way for us to be forgiven, saved, and reconciled to Him. What love!
2) The opportunity to be called a child of God
If there's another thing that only God is able to give us, it's His gift of being Father to us. All of us who believe in Christ, regardless of our earthly family's status, are called as God's children. This is a privilege like no other.
1 John 3:1 tells us, "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!" Think about that.
3) The fact that God isn't finished with us yet
Ok, maybe you were hoping that I'd encourage you to thank God for all the blessings and good things He gave all of us. Yes, we should. But more than just thanking Him for what He has given or done to us, we should also thank Him for the fact that He's not done doing all sorts of good to us.
This is our hope: that He will not stop transforming us and molding us into being like Christ. This is the greatest thing that could happen to us, that when we are conformed to the character of Christ, we'd be putting a great smile on His face. 1 John 3:2-3 tells us,
"Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure."
