Give Thanks

Give Thanks
Jennifer Mahone

Photo by Hanny Naibaho on Unsplash

“And on that day they offered great sacrifices,
rejoicing because God had given them great joy.
The women and children also rejoiced.
The sound of rejoicing in Jerusalem could be heard far away.”
Nehemiah 12:43

This is certainly my favorite time of the year. It’s a time of family, rejoicing, celebrating and blessing. All of these moments are awaited with great anticipation. Tis the season to be thankful and jolly. Tis the season to somehow forget all the worries and feel freedom from stress, right? Shouldn’t it be? We could only hope and pray, but the truth of the matter is that we actually allow more stress to enter into our life when we become so concerned with everything happening around us and we tend to forget the true meaning of this season. Tis the season to remember that we are truly blessed!

So many times we allow ourselves to get caught up in the thoughts of everything we wish we had and look at the lack rather than the blessings in our life. I can remember the days early in marriage when my husband and I had our own financial struggles (and I say our own, because everyone goes through a rough season at some point…maybe even a few seasons) and we found ourselves sitting in the dark, no electricity, not much food, a small battery operated radio and our bible. We would sit reading God’s word to each other in the fireplace light (in the mid of summer in Texas…lol) and all we could do was hang on to every word we read. We knew that even though we were lacking in finances and food, God would still provide all we needed. We may have not been able to see it but we had faith to believe it. God DID provide…everything and more than what we needed. And most of all we grew closer to Him.

I was reading in Nehemiah 12 about the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem. I would encourage you to read the story if you have the time. When Nehemiah heard that the walls of Jerusalem had been broken down and burned with fire he mourned and fasted and prayed to God. He was in great despair for the people of Israel. God gave him favor with the King in his request to carry out the task of rebuilding the wall. It was not going to be an easy job but he was prepared. Nehemiah and the people of Israel endured many obstacles throughout the days of rebuilding. They had every opportunity to quit. They were laughed at and ridiculed, mocked and plotted against. The people began to tire and feared that the rebuilding would never be completed. Nehemiah endured personal attack. The enemy came to try and get him to compromise. They slandered and threatened him. Needless to say, Nehemiah endured and overcame. After 52 days the wall was completed. Nehemiah and the people of Israel did not see defeat but victory.

Just like Nehemiah, we have a purpose. We get up each day with a task in mind and that task is the great opportunity of fulfilling our God given purpose. But it won’t always be easy. Things may get delayed, we might have to encourage ourselves, life may seem like it lay in ruin but we must get up and rebuild.

The greatest part to this story comes in Chapter 12 where the people have come together for the great celebration of the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem. No matter their loss, they continued to look towards the great restoration of all that had been stripped from them. God saw the need and he sent the one with determination and perseverance to restore to them their hope through a wall.

We must rejoice in the blessings of God. Yes we may go through hard times, but it is the blessings in our life that continue to give us hope. We are exactly one week out from Thanksgiving day. I would like to challenge you in this wonderful season to reflect on the blessings of God in your life. Write down at least 25 things that you can thank God for every single day from this point on. When we begin our day in gratitude to Him we have already encouraged ourselves to walk the rest of our day out in confidence and excitement for the next great blessing. What can be greater than life itself! Each morning, get up and instead of thinking on the trials and hardships in our life, rebuild the wall of our faith by thanking Him for all He has done for us. Nehemiah 12:43 says that the people rejoiced because God had given them great joy, but they didn’t stop there. “Their rejoicing in Jerusalem could be heard far away.”

You see, when we rejoice, others around us will want to as well. When they rejoice, we have rebuilt the wall by being an encouragement to one another. And most importantly, we have shown God the gratitude of our hearts and He loves when we love Him. Let this Thanksgiving be the beginning of hope and faith being rebuilt and promises being restored in your life.

Be Blessed!
Jennifer