11-18-12 AM - Thanksgiving Three Ways to Look At It

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Thanksgiving: Three Ways to Look at It

Psalm 95:1-11 Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. 2 Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song. 3 For the Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods. 4 In his hand are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to him. 5 The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land. 6 Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker; 7 for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care. Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah, as you did that day at Massah in the desert, 9 where your fathers tested and tried me, though they had seen what I did. 10 For forty years I was angry with that generation; I said, "They are a people whose hearts go astray, and they have not known my ways." 11 So I declared on oath in my anger, "They shall never enter my rest."

1. An Upward Look Should Make Us Thankful.

A. An Upward Look Brings Thanks for the Power of God. (1-5)

1 Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. 2 Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song. 3 For the Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods. 4 In his hand are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to him. 5 The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land.                                                                                                                

B. An Upward Look Brings Thanks for the Plans of God. (6-8a)
6 Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker; 7 for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care. Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts…

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.                                                                                                                

C. An Upward Look Brings Thanks for the Presence of God.

We can come, and kneel (4); we are the people of his pasture the flock under his care (7)

Psalm 46:1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

Heb. 4:15-16  For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin. 16 Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

2. An Outward Look Should Make Us Thankful.

A. An Outward Look at Supplies Make Me Thankful.
Php. 4:19  And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

The secret of a happy life is not to get what you want; but to live with what you’ve have.                                                                                                  
YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU’VE GOT TILL IT’S GONE

“But, what have you done for me lately?”

C. An Outward Look at Sinners makes me thankful. (8-11)
Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah, as you did that day at Massah in the desert, where your fathers tested and tried me, though they had seen what I did. For forty years I was angry with that generation; I said, "They are a people whose hearts go astray, and they have not known my ways." So I declared on oath in my anger, "They shall never enter my rest."


D. An Outward Look at Salvation makes me thankful.
v. 1b, 6-7

3. An Inward Look Should Make Us Thankful.

A. An Inward Look at my Heart Makes me Thankful.

The Art of Thanksliving is gratitude in action.

B. An Inward Look at my Health Makes me Thankful.

C. An Inward Look at my Household Makes me Thankful.
Psalm 127:3-5 Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. [4] As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. [5] Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them.