Before November ends, I wanted to share a few thoughts that I have had concerning thankfulness. Every year around Thanksgiving, we focus on all the things that we are thankful for--a place to live, food to eat, a car that gets us where we need to go, clothes, family, friends, salvation, and on and on. And this is a great thing, but the truth is that we should focus on being thankful all year long, not just at one special time a year.
As I was reading my Bible the other day, I came across some interesting verses in Paul's letter to the Romans. In chapter 16, as Paul is giving his personal greetings, he says this, "Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks but all the churches of the Gentiles give thanks as well." (verses 3-4)
As I read those verses I thought about what they meant. Obviously, Paul was thankful for those who saved his life, but I had never thought about the Gentiles being thankful as well. Had Prisca (or Priscilla) and Aquila not saved Paul's life, he would have never gone and told the Gentiles about Christ. Have you ever given thanks for those who had an influence in the life of the person who led you to Christ? If their Mother or Father, Pastor or Sunday School Teacher, or Friend or Neighbor had never told them about Christ, would you ever have been told about Him? That is such a neat thought to me. My dad was the one who lead me to Christ and I have always been thankful that I was raised in a Christian home, but I never thought to say thanks for the fact that my father was raised in a Christian home or for the person that lead him to Christ.
Many times throughout Paul writings, he tells those he is writing to that he thanks God for them constantly in his prayers. Even though November is coming to a close, let's try together to be always thankful not just for the things God has given us, but also for the people that God has put in our life and the lives of those around us to lead us to Christ and to help us to grow as Christians through encouragement and direction.
