Thanksgiving from a Humble Heart

Shout triumphantly to the LORD, all the earth. Serve the LORD with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs. Acknowledge that the LORD is God. He made us, and we are His--His people, the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the LORD is good, and His love is eternal; His faithfulness endures through all generations (Psalm 100).

As we celebrate Thanksgiving Day here in America this week, I have been pondering this question: "What makes the Christian's Thanksgiving Day different from that of the rest of the world?" To begin answering this question, I think about the Apostle Paul's words in the book of Romans. He essentially says that ungratefulness characterizes the hearts of unbelievers and therefore implies that gratefulness should characterize the hearts of those who follow Jesus (see Romans 1:21). Let me share a couple of thoughts from Psalm 100 illustrating what this means for Thanksgiving.

First, why do we shout? Why do we serve the Lord? Why do we sing to the Lord? The Psalmist gives a three-fold response: 1. Because He is God and we are not-- Acknowledge that the LORD is God. 2. Because He is the Creator and we are the created--He made us, and we are His. 3. He is independent and we are dependent--His people, the sheep of His pasture. Thanksgiving from a humble heart begins with recognizing the supremacy of God and our utter dependency upon Him for everything large and small in life.

Second, why do we enter His gates with thanksgiving and praise? Again, the Psalmist gives a three-fold response: 1. Because He is good. We can be assured that every working of God in our lives is based upon His goodness. He has our best interests in mind. 2. Because His love is eternal. God's love has been evidenced since the very beginning and will hold steady for all of eternity. Regardless of our circumstances, His love remains steady. 3. Because His faithfulness endures forever. I may waiver and change, but He remains faithful forever. He acts out of His own faithfulness.

Christian thanksgiving should be centered more on the Person of God than on the blessings of God, because the blessings of God are a reflection of who He is. A failure to connect the blessings of God to His character can cause us to worship the gift rather than the Giver. And, that is idolatry. So, this Thanksgiving Day, humble yourself before the Living God recognizing Him for who He is and your dependency upon Him for every sustenance of life.