Thankful Thursday

Perhaps it is the season of Thanksgiving upon us, or perhaps it is related to particular scriptures that I have been dwelling on of late that I am drawn to the concept of thankfulness.  Last week I considered the idea of hosting a "Thankful Thursday" party on my blog through the month of November to prepare for the Thanksgiving holiday.  I considered it for a few days and decided chickened out--plain and simple.  But, the idea continued nagging at my heart through the weekend.

I am, in fact, hosting my Thankful Thursday party on this blog for the next three Thursdays.  My change of heart came Sunday during our Sunday school class.  We are finishing up a James McDonald series on the book of Colossians.  In chapter 4 verse 2 (the first verse we started with last Sunday) says this:

"Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a THANKFUL heart."

For some reason, that made the decision in my heart to dedicate some posts on Thanksgiving. .the REAL kind. 

I tried to search out how many times the bible advises us to be thankful or to give thanks.  The answer I found was A LOT.  There are multiple phrases used to mean the same thing. .Giving thanks, thanksgiving, thankfulness, grateful etc.  So at least well over 200 times we are instructed to be thankful or give thanks.  In Ephesians 5:20 Paul advises us "And you will always give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ."

And Psalms 107:1 and 118:1 and 118:29 tell us to

"Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever."

Today, I am especially thankful for technology.  I find it fascinating that I can search for ANYTHING I could ever want to find. .a particular scripture verse-or the ability to dive deeper into the meaning of a scripture, a recipe, or even old friends. .and have instant knowledge at my fingertips.  I think it is an excellent resource for drawing support and inspiration. .for expanding our minds. .for allowing us to reach out to others. . and is a great way to connect with loved ones far away or with people sharing similar interests or conflicts.  It has helped me create relationships with new friends that I have never met, helped me catch up with old friends that I had lost track of, and assisted me in keeping family and friends updated on the big and little things in my own life.  Granted, as with anything else, technology can be a very bad thing if it is given a role of idolatry in our lives! But that is a whole other post!!

So I guess now I am offering a challenge and an invitation.  First, I challenge all of you to look at being thankful in a new way this month.  I am planning on taking my own challenge too!! Be thankful DAILY in your prayers to our Lord--even before we get to the part about asking him to meet our needs.  Don't be thankful only for the GOOD things, but also be mindful about being thankful for our challenges and our hardships. .for those are what truly develop our character.  Second, I invite EVERYONE who happens along this post to place a comment, whether you believe and pray to Jesus. .or you don't--because we ALL have things to be thankful about.  The comment should address something or a few things that you are thankful for. .big or little!! My little tracking widget on the side bar tells me there are lots of people who pop in but never comment.  If you have never left a comment, just hit "comment" at the end of this post, and leave your item or items of thanksgiving, sign your name if you like, and check the anonymous circle if you don't have your own identity.  That's it.
I hope it to be a very enlightening experience to all of us, and I know that I will enjoy the opportunity to be able to be thankful for and with all of you too!

I look forward to reading about everything we have to be thankful for. .Hope you can check back too. .