November 12 -

Corrie ten Boom was an inspiration and challenge to thousands of people after World War II. Hearts were stirred and lives changed as she told with moving simplicity about God's sufficiency to meet her needs, even as a prisoner in a Nazi concentration camp.  

Not only was the camp filthy, but there were fleas everywhere. Corrie's sister Betsie, who was imprisoned with her, insisted that 1 Thessalonians 5:18 was God's will for them: "In everything give thanks." But giving thanks in a flea-infested place seemed unrealistic to Corrie—until she realized why the guards didn't come into their barracks to make them stop praying and singing hymns. They wanted to avoid the fleas! So, the prisoners were free to worship and study the Bible. The fleas, yes, even the fleas were agents of grace, and something to be thankful for.

What are some of the "fleas" in our lives? They aren't the big difficulties, but the petty annoyances. They are the little trials from which we can't escape. Is it possible that they are one of the ways the Lord teaches us spiritual lessons and helps us to increase our endurance?

When we are tempted to grumble, let's remember the fleas and give thanks.

1 Chronicles 16:34  Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.

 MAKE SURE THAT YOU ARE THANKFUL TO THE RIGHT SOMEBODY!

Here is a key thought for you & yours this Thanksgiving.  It may even create an opportunity for you to share your thankfulness, if you are willing to take advantage of the opportunity.

Here it is…if we’re going to say "thank you" we must say "thank you" to somebody. Make sure that it is the right somebody.

Harriet Martineau was an atheist. One morning she & a friend stepped out into the glories of a beautiful fall morning. As she saw the brilliant sun peaking through the haze, & the frost on the meadow, & the brightly colored leaves making their way lazily to the ground, she was filled with the beauty & burst forth with "I am so thankful. I’m just so grateful for it all." And her believing friend asked, "Grateful to whom, my dear?"

That’s a good question at Thanksgiving. If you’re grateful, if you’re really thankful, then the next question would have to be, "Grateful to whom?"

Look for opportunities this Thanksgiving to give appropriate thanks.

Job 36:15            But those who suffer he delivers in their suffering; he speaks to them in their affliction.

          Born in England in 1571, John Donne spent his youth in rebelliousness, expressed in witty erotic poetry. Turning at last to Christ, Donne came to see himself as a prodigal saved only by grace.

Through a middle age marked by increasing devotion to Christ—but also by poverty and discouragement—he turned his evident poetic skill to the great themes of love, death, and God's mercy. Then in 1615 he became an ordained Anglican priest, and thereafter poured his creative energies more into sermons than poems.

            During a near-fatal illness in the year 1623, however, Donne turned again to poetry, completing his most famous volume, the Devotions upon Emergent Occasions. Each day, the bedridden clergyman heard from his window the church bells of London announcing that the Black Plague—then scourging Europe—had taken more victims. Donne was convinced he, too, had the plague and would soon die (in his famous phrase, the person "for whom the bell tolled" was himself).

It turned out that he did not die quite yet; he recovered, living on to the age of 59 or 60. But in the teeth of his suffering and fear, Donne poured out verses reaching towards God.

            Here is one of his poems set to modern English.  It answers one of the toughest questions we can face, In the midst of plague times, how can we give thanks?

            “O eternal and most gracious God, you have reserved your perfect joy and perfect glory for the future when we will possess, forever, all that can in any way conduce to our happiness. Yet here also in this world, you grant us earnests full of payment, glimpses of that stored treasure. Just as we see you through a glass darkly, so also do we receive your goodness by reflection and by your instruments.

            Nature reaches out her hand and offers corn, and wine, and oil, and milk; but it was you who filled the hand of nature with such bounty. Industry reaches out her hand and gives us fruits of labor for ourselves and our prosperity; but you guided the hands that sowed and watered, and you gave the increase. Friends reach out their hands to support us; but your hand supports the hand we lean on. Amen”

Psalm 139:13-14   13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.  14 I praise you because                  I am fearfully and wonderfully made;  your works are wonderful,  I know that full well.

 

A teacher asked her students to list what they thought was the present Seven Wonders of the World. The students cast the most votes for:

 

1. Egypt's Great Pyramids                                     5. Empire State Building

2. Taj Mahal                                                         6. St. Peter's Basilica

3. Grand Canyon                                                  7. China's Great Wall

4. Panama Canal

 

While gathering the votes, the teacher noted that one student had not turned in her paper yet. She asked the girl if she was having trouble with her list.

The girl replied, "Yes, a little. I couldn't quite make up my mind because there were so many."

The teacher said, "Well, tell us what you have, and maybe we can help."

The girl hesitated, then read, "I think the Seven Wonders of the World are:

1. to see                                                    5. to feel

2. to hear                                                  6. to laugh

3. to touch                                                7. to love

4. to taste

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 16Be joyful always; 17pray continually; 18give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

 How do you solve a personal problem? Let's say you have a fondness for gossip or quarreling. How do you stop? Or suppose someone has a life-controlling addiction to alcohol or drugs or sex. How do you, or they get free?

Sometimes the answer is something that seems totally unrelated.

For example, in the middle of winter when your feet are cold, you may try putting on thicker socks or a blanket. Still your feet may be icy. One secret to warm feet is to stop focusing on your feet and look at your head. That's right, go to the other end of your body and put a hat on. Although your neck and head have only 10 percent of your body surface, in the cold that's where you lose a whopping 30 percent of your body heat. Having nothing on your head is like opening a window in your house in the dead of winter. If you keep that heat in your body with a hat, your blood will carry it down to your toes.

In the same way, when people have problems, spiritual leaders often recommend that they do something that sounds unrelated, such as read the Bible, pray, go to church, or focus on serving other people. These seemingly unrelated things bring grace to help overcome problems.