How are you? How has your week been?
My week has been such a blessing. We were able to celebrate the covenant of marriage between two people in our congregation. And then a couple days later, I was able to celebrate my birthday with my wife.
These two celebratory occasions are great opportunities for reflection and thanksgiving. You thank God for the people in your life. You thank God for the people who have walked with you and invested in you. You thank God for the people who care for you and love you.
But do we thank God for the people who don’t love us? How about the people whom we envy? How about the people who disagree with us or just annoy us? Do we thank God for them?
Our passage on Sunday gave us the simple call for us to thank God for the church. Even if we are divided like the Corinthian church, we are called to thank God for one another.
Why? Why do we thank God for the church? It’s because of the grace of God that has been given to them. God has saved them. God has redeemed them. God has gifted them. God will sustain them. That is the foundation for our thanksgiving.
We can be thankful, because we know that we have been saved and redeemed. We have been gifted by God, and we will be sustained by God. We have received the grace of God, and this is given in and through Christ.
Do we thank God for others? Even when they annoy us? Even when they hurt us? Even when they are divided against us?
New Life, let’s take some time this week and truly thank God. Let’s thank God for the people in our lives. Let’s thank God for our family. Let’s thank God for our church. Let’s thank God because of Christ.
See you on Sunday for Lord’s Day Worship. Pray for our ministry and for one another.
In Christ,
Pastor Tim
Pastor Tim
Photo Credit: https://baptiststoday.org/thank-god/