Category Archives: Thanksgiving

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NOT FIRST


1 THESSALONIANS 4:15

“For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.” 

Come on now, be honest. Don’t you like to be first in line? We want that from our childhood. When children line up to go to lunch or recess at school, many of them want to be the first in line. Most teachers avoid this fight and assign daily line leaders. We don’t want to be bring up the rear. We want to be first.

But Paul tells us that if we are alive when Christ returns, we will NOT be the first to go. All those saints who have died before His return will precede us. They will burst forth from their graves, or wherever their bodies were laid, a precede us in the air to meet our Lord and Savior. But don’t worry. It will happen so fast you won’t even realize it.

APPLICATION

The next time your little Johnny or Susie fight to be first, read them this verse. First isn’t always better. Show them in this verse that if we are alive when Christ returns, WE will get to see that. Wouldn’t that be grand? Get your child to draw a picture of what they think that might look like. That’s worth being second, isn’t it?

Also, by giving up that fight to be first all the time, we have the opportunity to serve others and lead them to Christ. All those who have gone before us don’t have that opportunity anymore. But while we wait on Jesus to return, we can talk to others about Him and perhaps they can join us on that day.

What are you waiting for? Are you pushing to be first all the time? Don’t! Step back and let others go ahead of you. That can even work in traffic (God forbid, lol). Yield to Jesus. Let Him always be first.

I fight this battle every day, Lord. I want to be first in all my endeavors. Let me learn the humility of being in back of the line so I can serve others.

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DON’T BE IGNORANT


1 THESSALONIANS 4:13

“But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope.” 

Don’t be ignorant! That is what Paul is saying! He didn’t want the Thessalonians to believe the wrong stuff about the death. He says they are just “sleeping,” which was a term used to refer to someone who had died. Sleeping implies they are going to wake up, right? That’s the cool part.

You see, we know as believers that we are going to spend eternity with the Father. Our bodies will not be resurrected until Jesus returns. So, until then their bodies “sleep.” They wait for that glorious day. Waiting, waiting, waiting!

APPLICATION

What a fun verse to teach your kids. Tonight, when you tuck them in, talk about it. Just as they will go to sleep and awake in the morning, we will lay down our bodies one day, only to have it awoken by Jesus at the rapture. Our bodies will be changed and glorified. Therefore, we have no reason to grieve, as those who have no hope.

It is so important to teach our children that death for a Christian is just a passage to Jesus. When we die will be instantly in the presence of God. What could be bad about that? Our fleshly body will be buried, but WE AREN’T IN IT! It’s literally an empty shell. Death need not scare us. As believers in Christ, we are guaranteed entry to heaven. 

Are you ready? What about this worries you? It shouldn’t. Don’t let your “ignorance,” your lack of knowledge or experience about death cause you to grieve unnecessarily. The Lord Jesus can take away all the sorrow. I am reminded of Paul’s words to the Corinthians, “O death, where is your sting?”

I am thankful, Lord, that I am secure in You. My earthly death allows me to enter into my heavenly home. My body may stay behind, but I am with you. Hallelujah!

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REJECTION

1 THESSALONIANS 4:8 

“So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you.”  

Rejection is probably the one thing I struggle with most. When I am rejected by someone, it hurts. Most of the time it’s because my pride is hurt. It’s all about me. I know I do NOT need the other person’s acceptance to identify me, but I still don’t like that someone doesn’t like me.   

But we can expect this if we are walking with Christ. Jesus told us, and Paul is telling us in today’s verse. People who aren’t walking in the light do not like the light shining on them. It points out their faults. He exposes their sin. So, if you are walking with Christ and trying to live for Him, others will reject you because of Him. 

APPLICATION 

Teaching our children about rejection is difficult and very emotional. They will encounter this at some point. Other children can be so cruel. Some kids just love to hurt other kids. They think it makes them feel better, but it doesn’t. We have to teach our children that their identity rest in Jesus, not in the opinion of men. 

When our children grasp this truth, they will be able to withstand any amount of rejection. Sure, it will still hurt. But knowing who you are in Christ makes all the difference. Jesus can handle the rejection. He is God. Let Him take those hurled words of insult. Let Him shoulder the load of rejection. He is able. 

Have you been rejected lately? How about by someone you love? Maybe even a family member? It hurts, I know. But give it all to Jesus. Let Him take the pain away. If you are living for Him, He will comfort you in the very midst of the rejection.  

Father, I know You experienced rejection when You sent Your Son to earth to die for us. When the world rejected Him, they rejected You. So, I know You understand how I feel when I go through this. Take this emotional pain from me today. 

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IT’S NOT COMPLICATED

1 THESSALONIANS 4:4 

“that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor,”  

Don’t read too much into this verse. It’s pretty simple. Not too complicated. Paul is telling us to control our bodies. As Christians, the Thessalonians needed to be reminded that even their bodies were a reflection of Christ. The same goes for us today. So, what does that mean? 

It does NOT mean that we get obsessed with exercise. While that is good and necessary, this earthen vessel is just that – an earthen vessel. It is going to get old and broken. We can’t stop the aging process. But we can honor God by how we treat it. Our body is deserving of sanctification and honor because it is the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. Shouldn’t He live in a nice place? 

APPLICATION 

Take your children on a ride to the part of town where the houses are run down and in need of repair. Then take them to a newer neighborhood and show them some new homes. You are not trying to say anything about the people who live there. You are just looking at the structures. 

Ask them which house they would want to live in? I am sure they will pick the new house. Explain to them how their bodies, if they are believers, is like that. We must care for our bodies since it is where the Holy Spirit lives, and it’s the very thing that people see about us.  We all get sick and may get diseases. We are not referring to that. But we must do all we can to let our “vessels” honor the Lord.  

Okay! Here comes the hard question. How is your vessel looking? God loves you no matter what your body type. But He desires us to honor Him with what He has given us. Abusing our bodies dishonors the Lord. Abusing our vessels may make it unusable to the Lord. Keep yourself ready for the journey. You never know where He may ask you to go. 

Lord, I want to be used by You. Help me discipline my body to be prepared for whatever task You have for me. I thank You that You have given me the strength to serve. 

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BE SANCTIFIED

1 THESSALONIANS 4:3 

“For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality;” 

Just what does this mean? Be sanctified! How is that possible? How can we possibly be sanctified? In this verse Paul tells the Thessalonians to keep themselves pure, to protect their bodies and to flee from immorality. Remember they are in a pagan city surrounded by idol worship that usually involved sexual practices. Enough about that! You get the picture. 

But Paul is saying “Run from that stuff!” However, they need to run to God. He is the only One who sanctifies. We can’t sanctify ourselves. When we surrender to Him and to His Will, then He can begin the sanctification process. He can make us holy, just like Him, if we allow Him to work in and through us. 

APPLICATION 

Now, how do you explain sanctification to your children? Well, sanctification means you are looking more and more like Jesus. Have you ever seen a picture of a child whose face was aged to look older? The program projects what the child would look like in 10, 20 or 30 years. This would be a fun thing to do with your child. 

Then read this verse and explain that the Lord knows EXACTLY what they are going to look like. More importantly, He knows how close they can look like Him if they surrender to Him. Ask your child if they want to be like Jesus (they probably don’t want to look like Him with the beard and long hair, lol). I bet they will want to BE like Him. Your job starts right there. You can help them make good choices while they are young, so they will know how to do that as the age. 

How are you doing with your own sanctification? Are you fleeing from immorality? We may not have pagan temples around us, but we sure have the lures of this world that can rob us of being sanctified. Will you surrender to Him today and allow Him to work on you? 

Lord, sanctify me today. Take my life and make it Yours. I want to look just You. 

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MORE THAN ENOUGH


1 THESSALONIANS 3:12

“and may the Lord cause you to increase and abound in love for one another, and for all people, just as we also do for you;” 

Paul is making a wish here – that the Thessalonians would increase and abound in love. Now, even though this was a wish he hoped to see come true, it was a pretty, sure wish. Paul had confidence that they would do just what he hoped. Why? Because he knew their love first hand. He had experienced  their love. He knew they were quite capable.

These two words, “increase” and “abound,” mean very similar things. They can both mean more than enough, overflowing or abundant. Paul was simply trying to overemphasize the point to them. But it is important to remember that they could only “overflow” what was in them. This love came from an unending source – God.

APPLICATION

Tell me this – do you ever run out of love for your children? Of course, not. And let me tell you, it’s even more true with your grandchildren. I have four (as of this writing), and the love I have for them just gets stronger each day. I don’t have that capacity in myself. Any love I feel for anyone comes from the love the Father has shown me.

I want to challenge you to let that love you have for family extend to your church family, to your neighbors and even to strangers. Teach your children to love abundantly. Teach them to overflow with love. Show them what that looks like, not just to them but with others. 

If you will commit to love like that, you will experience an even deeper love of the Father. I know the Lord is well pleased when we love well. When He sees His love poured out on others through us, He smiles. After all, He still uses us to spread His Word and His love on this earth.

God of love, thank You for using me to love others. Help me to love those whom I find it hard to love. You can love them through me.

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PAYBACK


1 THESSALONIANS 3:9

“For what thanks can we render to God for you in return for all the joy with which we rejoice before our God on your account,”  

Most of the time when you hear the term “payback” you think about getting back at someone for something they have done to you. That is NOT what Paul meant in this verse when he said “render to God.” The word “render” means payback. So, what did Paul mean?

Paul was caught up in a moment of praise and thanksgiving to God for these Thessalonians. As he is reflecting on his memories of them and on the report he had received from Timothy, he erupts in thanks to God. He is literally paying back God for all He has done in and through the Thessalonians. Paul just lost it in praise!

APPLICATION

Have you ever seen your children “lose it” when they got overjoyed about something? They get so excited they can’t even talk, and then they scream and yell and shout! Right? Maybe you have surprised them with that long, awaited trip to Disney World. They can’t put the words together to thank you. They want to “render” to you the thanks they feel, but they don’t know how.

The next time that happens, stop and get them to calm down. Then lead them in thanking God for the blessing they have received. Make sure they know that all praise goes to Him. He is the only one who deserves it. Paul knew that. So should we.

Who are you thanking? Who are you giving praise to today? Point all your praise to your heavenly Father. When we do that the Word says He inhabits it. Now that is incredible. He loves our praise so much He lives in it. What are you waiting on? Praise Him!

I praise You, O Lord. There is no other one I can thank for all that has come to me. I give You the glory!

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