by Elizabeth Burgard Fulgaro (c) 2011 www.holyspiritpress.org www.eaglesnestfoundation.org
PSALM 100:4-5 (NKJV)
4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
5 For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting,
And His truth endures to all generations.
In the United States we have entered the season of Thanksgiving. Over the years this has become a time to celebrate friends and family. This is good, and yet Thanksgiving is so much more. Consider the name, “Thanks-giving”. Giving thanks….Give thanks to whom? Of course, Christians know. Not just general thanks, but thanks to the One who is in control and from whom all things come: the One true God who is LORD.
When we give thanks to God it is an expression of our trust in Him – that we believe He is who He says, and will fulfill what He promises. Our thanks is an outward representation of our fear of the Lord above all else. We are not afraid of Him, but we have a reverential awe before Him. We understand it is His approval we need – no other. We know it is His power which will have highest effect – no other. We know our life is in Him and He is the One who enables us to have all we have.
When we give thanks to God it brings us into the intimacy of His Dwelling Place and it helps us enter the REST He offers us in all circumstances. We receive His gifts of peace and joy.
Giving thanks is not hard. We tend to worry (which He cautions against) and as soon as God answers one prayer we are quick to send up another. We tend to be unnecessarily consumed with our needs (expressed in worry) instead of resting in how God promises to answer them. Stopping to give thanks is powerful.
To get started pause and consider the many prayers He already has answered. Make a written list. Include both those things which seem small (like His opening traffic-filled roads to get us somewhere on time) to those which seemed larger (getting us through illnesses or unemployment.) Funny thing is, to Him all our prayer requests are the same size. Next consider and make a list of all God promises through Jesus.
And so we give thanks and God is honored, but we are the ones who are blessed. HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Selah! [Pause and calmly think of that!]
END
Christmas is coming. A few years ago, the Lord whispered to my heart that He wanted to be worshipped at Christmas and He showed me how many of the songs we sing beautifully tell the story of His birth and why He came, but very few actually worship Him during this festive season. As a result in December 2009 I was in the studio beginning to record CHRISTMAS WORSHIP, which includes 7 new, original Christmas worship songs, which the Lord had me compose specifically for this project. Please consider giving the gift of CHRISTMAS WORSHIP this Christmas. It can be purchased at www.holyspiritpress.org or amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Worship-Elizabeth-Fulgaro/dp/B004D9931G/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1320069144&sr=8-2 or CDbaby.com http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/elizabethfulgaro3. Music clips can be heard at the CD Baby or amazon.com links. May God receive the honor and worship He is due this Christmas season.
Elizabeth Fulgaro is a wife, mother, writer, inspirational speaker, worship leader, composer, singer & recording artist. She is also a Certified Financial Planner and Accredited Financial Counselor with a heart for helping Christians understand and steward their finances God’s way.
For books, worship cds, Bible studies and teachings written by Elizabeth Fulgaro or to schedule her to come speak to your group please visit www.holyspiritpress.org Worship music audio clips can be found at www.cdbaby.com/Artist/ElizabethFulgaro For information on her work for the military and their families please visit www.eaglesnestfoundation.org Eagles Nest Foundation is a 501(c)3 corporation. Contributions are tax-deductible.
