I just love Thanksgiving time. I try to live a life of Thanksgiving to God in my heart with word and deed everyday, but the national time for special Thanksgiving that allows our family and friends to gather with us is what I love about this holiday so much. We have a house-full of family and friends this long Thanksgiving weekend and for that we are so blessed. We have plenty of everything, including love for each other.
Outside of Rusty and I however, our family who is gathered, do not know Christ. They're not opposed to Him in any way. As a matter-of-fact, they do believe He exists. They just don't know Him, trust in Him, worship Him, or seek Him. Although....we do believe there is work being done by the Spirit in this area. We have seen glimpses and have been asked questions :-) But one thing they do trust in and seek (so far at least) is money. Joking around they'll say "all I want for Chrismas is a million dollars". I don't know why a million dollars is the number, but it always is. This year, we happened to have million dollar bills with the gospel message printed on them. When our family starting joking about the million dollar gift, I went to find those bills and gave each member of the family one. I told them that this was really worth a lot more than a million dollars. They laughed, looked at the bills, then left them laying on the table.
I was saddened by this...as I am anytime Jesus, who gave all for us, is disregarded so easily. I know His heart is broken by His creation when they don't know Him and don't desire to know Him. It is for this reason He came into the world to begin with, so His creation would know Him.
John 1:9-11 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.
But then, I remember grace. It was through the grace of Christ that I came to Him...that any of us come to Him. I too was as lukewarm about Christ as our family is at one time. If someone handed me a track I don't know that I would have considered it worth anything either. But instead of disdain and contempt, Christ showered love, mercy and grace upon me. So, I have to take my thoughts captive and remember that as a follower of His, I need to respond in the same way.
My prayer for our family, friends and everyone within our personal sphere of influence is that one day, before they take their last breath, Christ will be more valuable to them than anything in this world. That He would be to them as valuable as to the man in the parable as told in Matthew 13:44 - “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field."
For that matter, I pray that I value Him in the same way.
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