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Living by God’s Word: Be Thankful and Give Praise on Thanksgiving

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Thoughts for Today

It’s important to be thankful, especially on Thanksgiving. After all, Jesus loved us so much He gave His blood and body for our sake. Because of His unconditional love, our sins may be forgiven. We remember Jesus’ sacrifice for us when we take the Lord’s Supper to show how much His suffering truly matters.

Consider This…

Although each one of us should be grateful to God every day, Thanksgiving is a special day for thankfulness. This is a day to glorify the Lord and give Him praise. When we sit down at the table to eat with family or friends, saying a prayer is an expression of gratefulness to God. This a time to reflect on Jesus’ suffering and His undying love for us. Besides this, those less fortunate than us don’t have enough food on the table, if any at all. This makes it even more important to contemplate everything we’re grateful for.

No one deserves to spend a holiday alone. This means we should invite every family member to our tables. This is the right thing to do because it’s unselfish, charitable and caring. Those who are lonely are often depressed or even suicidal and need unconditional love, especially during the holiday season. This should be a heartwarming time for family, friends. The only way to keep it this way is to be genuine with our actions.

Being a good role model for children is crucial to their growth. This means genuinely living by ethical standards each day. Teach them to be charitable, show kindness and be grateful for everything they have through worthy actions. They’ll likely carry these teachings with them throughout their whole lives. Furthermore, it’s completely worth the time and effort, because they’re a worthwhile investment that only grows over time.

On Thanksgiving, we have plenty of opportunities to praise God. For instance, consider taking some time alone for a few minutes to read the Bible. Getting involved with God on a deeper level can give one inner peace and strength. Further, try saying a prayer of gratefulness for family and friends. Saying a prayer for the homeless, malnourished children and other unfortunate people can be meaningful. They need someone to care selflessly about their plights when most people wouldn’t.

It’s vital to come to the aid of those less fortunate by doing charitable deeds on or around Thanksgiving. In fact, the Lord loves everyone and leaves no one to suffer alone. This means we should make an honest effort to emulate this admirable behavior whenever we’re able. For one, consider donating a fair amount to a church, homeless shelter, pet shelter or other nonprofit organization. Another way to help the needy is through volunteer work. Try helping out at a local church, serving food to the homeless, collecting donations for a nonprofit organization, fostering or adopting a dog or cat, or something else.

Despite the magnitude of volunteering and donating, the smallest good deeds don’t go unnoticed. Since numerous people lack the luxury of having something to believe in, doing the right thing can help them have hope. Everyone needs to know love exists, but, sadly, not everyone understands this. For this reason, be positive and have patience with these souls because, as unbelievers, they need God the most. Treat them with respect, smile genuinely, pick them up when they fall and give them unconditional love when no one else will.

Being considerate of animals is possibly the biggest way any of us could prove our humanity. Instead of ignoring our pets, we can give them safe treats, take them for walks and involve them in our family time. Treating them like family often makes a huge difference in their health and well-being every day. Animals deserve to be treated with respect and given unconditional love. Teaching kids to care for animals the right way will help them be grateful for every living being daily and on holidays.

Generosity goes a long way when people have almost nothing to be grateful for. Therefore, try giving out religious material, such as a Bible or informational pamphlets, to the needy by joining a church organization. This will give them the chance to have hope for the future and to understand that some people do care about them.

Prayer

Psalms 106:1-Praise ye the LORD. O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.

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