Today, I am grateful for my car that will carry me the four hundred miles down to Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I am grateful for the road trip snacks and the hospitality of those who will receive me when I arrive. Thanksgiving abounds for the church family I called home as a child and where I worked as women’s campus minister for six years. And tomorrow, we will give thanks together during a Ladies’ Brunch. We will remember what it is to give thanks, especially at the start of the holiday season. Our topic: “And Be Thankful.”
“And be thankful,” is a phrase tucked into chapter 3 of Colossians by the apostle Paul. It can either be seen as an afterthought: “Oh yeah, don’t forget to give thanks!” Or, we can see it as a pivotal and integral part of his instructions to the early church in Colossae. I prefer to see it as the latter. Read through the selected excerpt from Colossians 3 (verses 12-17) and see if you can accomplish any of those things without giving thanks.
12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Thank you, Father, that I am one of your chosen people. Thank you for setting me apart as your beloved child. When I recognize that truth, I am better able to clothe myself with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Since you forgave me—an act for which I am eternally grateful, I am able to bear with others and forgive others. Your love transforms and unites. Thank you.
With an attitude of gratitude, I can dwell in your peace, you rule my heart and I am united with others. Without Christ’s message, my heart cannot teach, admonish or sing. The overflow of gratitude in my heart allows me to be filled with wisdom and Your Spirit. Yes, whatever I do, whether in word or deed, cannot be done if it is not in the name of the Lord Jesus, or without giving thanks to You through Him.
“And be thankful.”