A Thanksgiving Feast

We all have much for which to be thankful. Amen! If you got up this morning, you should be thankful. Seeing another day is not always promised to us.

I want to reflect on my Thanksgiving experience; it was indeed a real feast! We spent this Thanksgiving with our cousins and the cousins can throw down; they are excellent cooks! We feasted on all the traditional Thanksgiving foods. I actually had two plates of food; could not eat dessert. I was thankful just to be in the presence of the cousins; to be near family and thinking what a blessing it was to just be there, a part of the Thanksgiving celebration.

We all are part of God's family and what a blessing that is. I was reading one of my devotions that I had not picked up in a while and in it was a scripture I would like to share with you.

It said, "You're are blessed when you're content with just who you are--no more, no less. That's the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can't be bought. You're blessed when you've worked up a good appetite for God. He's food and drink in the best meal you'll ever eat." Matthew 5:5-6

It has been a while since I have shared scripture with you but I did share part of this scripture on Thanksgiving Day. I wanted to reflect and meditate on this particular scripture more.

Are you content just with who you are--or are you desiring to be like someone else? Contentment is a sign of peace which comes from God, knowing that you are a part of God's plan, and it is a peace that only God can give. You can't get it from others. God's peace makes you content with being who you are because you are unique. God created you in His likeness and that makes you unique.

The scripture I gave you was taken from a new version of the bible, The Message, but I want to quote the NIV (new international version), which states "Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled." (Matthew 5:5-6) These are part of the beatitudes that Jesus shared with the crowds of people who constantly sought him out and He wanted to teach them about the Kingdom of God. He didn't necessarily teach or give them what they wanted to hear. Often He used parables to convey his messages.

Jesus began His sermon with words that seem to contradict each other, but God's way of living usually contradicts the world's. If you want to live for God, you must be ready to say and do what seems strange to the world. You must be willing to give when others take, to love when others hate, to help when others abuse. By giving up your own rights in order to serve others, you will one day receive everything God has in store for you.

You have pride in owning things or possessions but in this world, you can't serve two masters; you have to pick one. God alone is sufficient in Himself. You have to work up a good appetite for God and in doing so, you will receive everything God has for you. It may not be material possessions but it may be peace, hope, and joy.

Each beautitude describes how to be "blessed." "Blessed" means more than happiness. It implies the fortunate or enviable state of those who are in God's kingdom. To Jesus, "blessed" means the experience of hope and joy. To find hope and joy, the deepest form of happiness, you must follow Jesus no matter what the cost.

God is food and drink in the best meal you will ever eat. There is no substitute, in the physical, that can replace the meal that you will get by following Christ. Try Him! Thanksgiving filled your stomachs, but God will fill your life.

Thought for Today: Jesus is the best thing that ever happen to me! Let Him be the best thing that ever happened to you!