The Day After

In the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving you see them. No, not the early Christmas decorations, you will see the "Today I am thankful for..." posts. There is nothing wrong with that and, in fact, I have made them before. Having a day set aside specifically for thankfulness is a great idea, My question is this, "What about today?" Are you still thankful on Friday? "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." Those are the words of 1 Thessalonians 5:18. It seems clear that we are to be thankful, not just a few weeks in November, but all of the time. It also says to be thankful "In every thing..." A lot of people are thankful for things, but what about in things? Being thankful for things isn't inherently bad, I am thankful for a lot things: family, friends, a job I love, my students, etc... Being thankful for things is easy, being thankful in every thing is a different story. Being thankful in things means your current circumstances shouldn't affect your level of thankfulness. When your car won't start and you are running late, you are to be thankful. When your team loses, you are to be thankful. When you are facing your first holiday without a loved one, you are to be thankful. We are to be thankful in the hard times too. Now, being thankful in every thing is not the same as being thankful for every thing. Nowhere are we commanded to be thankful for every thing, just in every thing. That little preposition is important. For every thing give thanks would be a much different scripture. The man that penned these words wrote many of his letters while in jail. He was never thankful for being in jail, but he was thankful even though he was in jail. To be thankful in things you have to look beyond your current circumstances, be they good or bad, and focus on God and His blessings. God's blessings are not things, they are promises. They are the assurance of things hoped for, they are the promise of eternity with him. So now that it is Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, are you still thankful. I would encourage you to continue listing the things your are thankful for into December and beyond, and remember there is a difference between in and for.

Sparks Aren't Fires

     I recently heard this, "Sparks aren't fires." I heard it while watching someone analyzing a video about a band of three sisters that are now in their early 20s but have been performing together for over 10 years. These girls got the idea of being a band while playing the video game Rock Band. That was the spark for becoming a band. They have become a successful band through hard work and lots and lots of practice. They took that spark and tended to it and turned it into a fire.

     Sparks can start fires, but they can also just be sparks. If you want to start a fire you are going to have to do something more than have a spark. As Christians we experience those "spark" moments, times when the presence of God is tangible. Those moments are great, mountain top experiences, but if we don't do something to nurture that spark it will never turn into a fire. It is important to remember that sparks aren't fires. Sparks can start a fire, but it takes work after the spark to turn it into a fire.