Even though Thanksgiving is not until Thursday, we have already been bombarded with jingle bells, Santa Claus, sleigh rides, and Christmas trees. Last Friday Lara and I briefly went to a mall in St. Louis, and in many of the stores they were playing Christmas music and setting out Christmas decorations! In our mall the kids were lining up to get their pictures taken with Santa. It seems that Thanksgiving is being eclipsed. It is being forced into the shadows by frantic companies who desperately need strong sales to recoup losses.For these companies, getting into the Christmas spirit is much more profitable than getting into the Thanksgiving spirit.
This past week I spent time on the opening verses of Paul's letter to the Philippians. Like in so many of the apostle Paul's letters, he begins with thanksgiving. In Philippians 1:3-6 (NIV) he says, "I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."
We need to thank God for the blessings that he's given to us.
As I read these words I found myself coming under conviction. For many of us thanksgiving, or giving thanks, means rehearsing all the good things God has given to us in our lives. And God has given us a lot of good things, more than we really pay attention to. And this Christmas he will bless us with even more stuff, more than we even need.
We shouldn't feel guilty for these blessings. We should acknowledge their source and give praise to God. 1 Timothy 6:17 (NIV) says God provides all these things, "for our enjoyment" while at the same time telling us to put our hope in the God who provided them. James 1:16-17 (NIV) tells us, "Don't be deceived, my dear brothers. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." Instead of offering thanks for these gifts, Satan wants us to apologize for them. Or if that doesn't work, Satan wants us to be envious and jealous of what we don't have!
A good thing for us to do this Thanksgiving is to sit down and count our blessings. Take some time to specifically name and give thanks to God for the good things you enjoy. Do you enjoy your home? Do you enjoy your crafts and decorations? Do you enjoy your power tools? Do you enjoy your car? Your truck? Your furniture? Your clothing? Your family heirlooms? Your computer? Your jewelry? These are all things that God has provided to us in his generosity. The truth is that we have all our needs met and most of our wants are met as well.
Paul gives thanks for people and relationships.
But without diminishing the importance of giving thanks for these things, it is important that we take a lesson from the apostle Paul on giving thanks. I was convicted by the fact that the entire thrust of Paul's thanksgiving in Philippians 1 and virtually everywhere in his writings is on people. He puts a higher premium on people and relationships than on anything else.
The truth is that it can be so easy for us to take the people around us for granted, much like it is easy for us to take the material things around us for granted! Unfortunately, it is not until we lose the things around us or even the people around us, that we realize just how deeply we valued and cherished them. And let me just speak from experience, after having conducted dozens of funerals, that a funeral is a horrible time and place for us to begin giving thanks for the people around us who love us and mean the world to us.
And it is so unnecessary because there is no time like the present! There is no time like the present to start saying thanks. "Thanks. Thanks for being you. Thanks for making a difference in my life. Thanks for being a loving wife. Thanks for a being a loving husband, a great son, a great daughter, a great neighbor, a great teacher, a loyal friend, a constant support, and an encouragement."
It is evident in Philippians 1:3-6 that the apostle Paul put a premium on giving thanks for the people around him who meant the world to him. And this Thanksgiving we would do well to follow in his footsteps and seize the day and make this holiday a time when we give thanks for the people in our lives.
Paul says, "I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Consider several applications that arise from these verses.
Paul's thanksgiving was deeply personal and God-centered.
In Philippians 1:3 (NIV) Paul begins, "I thank my God every time I remember you." Paul wasn't an academic or theological recluse who was a stranger to relationships. He was a man who forged deep relationships and who built lasting memories with everyone he came in contact with. Some of those memories brought him tremendous joy. Some brought him tears. But he carried those memories with him everywhere he traveled. He kept the people of the Philippian Church near and dear to his heart. Even as he satin a cold, damp prison writing this letter he stoked the embers of those memories and rekindled them into a warm, glowing fire from which he drew incredible strength and encouragement.
But he did more than that. Paul developed the discipline of turning those cherished remembrances, whenever they arose, into moments of praise and thanksgiving. Every time a name or face flashed in his mind Paul made it a point to say, "Thanks God. Thanks for his life. Thanks for that memory." And when Paul says, "I thank my God every time I remember you", he is acknowledging God as the source or giver of those precious memories. After all, God is the giver of life. Every life, every breath, is a gift of his hands!
Right now there are names and faces of people flashing through your memories. These are the faces of people who have impacted your life in one fashion or another. Why not turn those deeply personal memories into moments of praise and thanksgiving, and acknowledge God as the generous giver of those memories? The people around you are a gift of God. Say, "Thanks, God!"
Paul's thanksgiving was constant and immediate.
Our English translations don't always reflect the precision of the original language in which these letters were written, but Paul is literally saying, "I am always thanking. I am always praying." For you English buffs, Paul is using present tense verbs and present tense participles. Furthermore, he is using a part of speech in the Greek language that suggests ongoing, constant, immediate action. In other words, Paul wasn't talking about something he had done in the past. Nor was Paul talking about something he will do in the future. He was talking about something he had made a point to do in the now and in the present. He was living his life without regret, never wanting to take the chance that he would always have tomorrow to finish today's business.
One of the things that keeps us from following Paul's example here is pride. So often we are too proud to humble ourselves in the presence of another person long enough to tell him thanks. Pride always takes the posture of superiority and overconfidence and independence. Pride arrogantly boasts, "I'm tough. I'm independent. I'm a warrior. I'm not so weak as to need people! I don't care what they say or do!" Pride keeps husbands from showing gratitude to their wives or vice versa. Pride keeps parents from saying, "I love you and I thank God for you", even to their own children or later to their grandchildren. Pride makes for a life full of regret and one missed opportunity after another of saying those all important words. "You're valuable. I thank God for you."
Paul wasn't so proud, even as a super-apostle, to show gratitude. And we shouldn't be that proud either.
Paul's thanksgiving was all-inclusive and unambiguous.
Notice what Paul says here. "I thank my God for all of you." Let me ask you a question. Tell me, who was Paul excluding in his prayer? As you read the book of Philippians you get the impression that Paul couldn't have been perfectly fond of everyone in the Philippian Church. If you do reverse psychology and imagine the people who Paul was writing to it becomes evident that many of them were pretty self-absorbed. Some of them were enemies of the cross and the gospel. Some of them were people who chased after one worldly distraction after another. Some of them had legalistic tendencies that threatened the life of the church.
We know that there were two women in the Church named Euodia and Syntyche who plagued the church with divisiveness and a critical spirit. There were some who were trying to undermine Paul's reputation and ministry. This is the church that Paul addressed Philippians 2:3-4 (NIV) to, "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others."
Thank God for those people who annoy or torment you.
It is easy to thank God for those people who are in our corner and who support us. But have you ever tried thanking God for the church bully? Or what about that tyrannical boss? Or for that cocky child or detached spouse? Have you ever tried saying thanks for that critical person who enjoys pointing out your faults and mistakes to you? And what about that self-absorbed person who begins every sentence with "I"?"I want this. I don't like that."
God has brought people into my life that have literally brought me to my knees. These were people who were obnoxious or critical or divisive or vengeful, antagonistic, annoying, and self-centered. These were people gifted at bringing out the worst in me! Can you relate?? I know you can!!
Before you write these people off as demonic tormentors, take a lesson from Paul. Paul thanked God for everyone in the Church at Phillipi. Everyone. As he wrote this thanksgiving he made it a point of emphasis to keep repeating inclusive phrases. "I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."(Underlining added) Paul found something redeemable in everyone, even his critics. With great patience and meekness he could humble himself to say "thanks" even to them!
I can recall a time when I almost left the ministry. I was younger and idealistic. I had just graduated Bible College and was ready to take the world by the tail. But there were these people who blocked my path at every turn. It seemed as if I could do nothing right in their eyes. They were critical and divisive. They were explosive and publicly vented their anger at me in front of others. They were influential enough to sabotage most every ministry move I made. I walked on glass every Sunday and I would pray, "Gee, thanks God. Why me?" I was sarcastic of course, and I could never bring myself to be grateful for them.
But as bizarre as it seems, in retrospect I wouldn't have had it any other way. Yes, I almost left the ministry, but then maybe not. In retrospect it seemed that God had placed those people there to strengthen me as a leader. He placed them there to test my resolve, to hone my passion, and to refine my vision. They were a spiritual test. And even though I passed their tests with a C minus, I still passed and I am a lot better and stronger for it. And just recently I found myself saying, "Gee God, thanks. And I mean it this time." Paul's thanksgiving was all-inclusive and unambiguous.
Paul's thanksgiving was joyful and optimistic.
Paul concludes his thanksgiving with these words. "I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."
This last point ties closely with my third point. Paul could offer thanksgiving not because of his confidence in men, but because of his confidence in God. Paul had total confidence that God would bring to completion the work he had begun in the lives of the Philippians. Remember that this is the church with Euodia and Syntyche and other self-absorbed people like them. This church included people who invited the scorn of the world on the Church. It can be so easy to become cynical about other people. It is so easy to become negative and distrustful and throw in the towel on others. It is easy to toss around labels and judgments. "They should be better. They should grow up. They should act like Christians. They're a bunch of hypocrites."
The trouble with this is that the Church is full of imperfect people like you and me. The Church is full of people who are being transformed into Christ's likeness, often times slowly, but surely nonetheless! The Church is full of people who are being sanctified by God's Holy Spirit. I wish this were an instantaneous process so that I could say, "There are no hypocrites among us. We've arrived!"
But this isn't the case! The truth is that God will not finish the work he is doing in our lives until the day of Jesus Christ's return. When Jesus Christ returns, then and only then will we be made perfect forever. Until that day we need to be a community of grace and truth. We need to be patient. We need to remain hopeful and optimistic. We need to remain prayerful and thankful and confident about the work God has begun in all of us!
This isn't easy, but it is necessary. It is something to be done with joy! Paul says he always prays with joy about their partnership in the gospel. The way we can share in this joyful thanksgiving is by changing our attitudes about the way God works, both in our lives and in the Church. We are all in the process of being made holy. But there is great joy in seeing God change us from the inside out, day by day and week by week.
This Thanksgiving be challenged by Paul's prayer of thanksgiving. Just forget about Christmas, because Christmas will take care of itself. Take time to thank God for the people who mean so much in your life. Take time now to thank God for the people in your life. Take time now to thank God for all the people in your life. Take time to joyfully thank God for the work he is doing in your life and in this church.
Paul says, "I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."