Thank you

     The pro football team had just finished their daily practice session when a large turkey came strutting onto the field. While the players gazed in amazement, the turkey walked up to the head coach and demanded a tryout. Everyone stared in silence as the turkey caught pass after pass and ran right through the defensive line. When the turkey returned to the sidelines, the coach shouted, "You're terrific!!! Sign up for the season, and I'll see to it that you get a huge bonus." "Forget the bonus," the turkey said, "All I want to know is, does the season go past Thanksgiving Day?"

     The average mother takes two whole days to prepare for Thanksgiving dinner but most kids don't really care. I have taken an informal but exhaustive poll of kids and have come to the conclusion that if Twinkies came with drumsticks, all turkeys would die of old age.

An industrious turkey farmer was always experimenting with breeding to perfect a better turkey.

His family was fond of the leg portion for dinner and there were never enough legs for everyone. After many frustrating attempts, the farmer was relating the results of his efforts to his friends at the general store get together. "Well I finally did it! I bred a turkey that has 6 legs!"

They all asked the farmer how it tasted.

A Thanksgiving Message”` 1 Thessalonians 5:18King James Version (KJV)

 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Introduction:

The king could not sleep. God awakened him in the night. It was time to do an inventory on his life. Had he left something undone? Yes, there was a man in his kingdom who had saved his life and nothing had been done to honor this man!

It is the week of Thanksgiving. Perhaps it is time for you to take an inventory as well. Is there someone in your life that you need to be thankful for? Is there someone in your life that you need to honor?

Five reasons: “Why to be thankful?”

1. You will be out of the will of God, if you are not thankful.  God said that we are to give thanks for all things. A person with an ungrateful heart is out of the will of God!

2. You will never see the wisdom of God, if you are not thankful.

James 1:5 says that when we don’t understand the difficulties in our life that we are to pray and ask God for wisdom. When we have a thankful attitude, we will begin to see the wisdom of God at work in our lives.

3. You cannot be an effective witness for God, if you are not thankful.

No one will want what you have if you are miserable all of the time! The joy of the Lord is your strength.

4. God cannot promote you with further blessings, if you are not thankful.

Who wants to bless someone with “more” if they are not thankful for their present blessings?

5. You will susceptible to the wiles of the Devil, if you are not thankful.

A discontented person is a perfect target for the Devil. The Devil has happy apples in his tree. Beware!

Who should we be thankful for?  Who does God want us to honor?

How about honoring your Mother:

(Prov 31:25 KJV) Strength and honour are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come.

How about honoring your Father?

(Exo 20:12 KJV) Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

How about honoring your Wife?

(1 Pet 3:7 KJV) Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.

How about honoring your church leaders?

(1 Tim 5:17 KJV) Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine.

How about honoring your civic leaders?

(1 Pet 2:17 KJV) Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.

How about honoring Christ?

(John 8:54 KJV) Jesus answered, If I honour myself, my honour is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me; of whom ye say, that he is your God:

How does one go about being thankful?

Even an ungodly Haman knew how to go about honoring someone. When the King asked of him the question, “How shall I honor a man whom I have chosen to honor?” Haman’s basic response was to treat the man as if he were a king. Haman was thinking of how that he would want to be honor and in so doing gave the correct response!

It is true that Christ needs to be honored in our lives:

(John 8:54 KJV) Jesus answered, If I honour myself, my honour is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me; of whom ye say, that he is your God:

We are to honor Christ by honoring the least of the brethren.

(Mat 25:40 KJV) And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

(Luke 6:31 KJV) And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.

When are we to demonstrate “thanksgiving” for others?

I want to remind you that Mordecai was under a death sentence. We don’t know how long that we have to be a blessing to others. If God has laid someone upon your heart to be a blessing to, do not delay!

(Mat 26:11 KJV) For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.

One of the saddest statements of the Bible:

(Est 6:3 KJV) And the king said, What honour and dignity hath been done to Mordecai for this? Then said the king’s servants that ministered unto him, There is nothing done for him.

Can you imagine that question being asked of you on the Day of Judgment? What have you done to honor the one who have rescued your life from the perils of the Devil? What have you done for Christ? And the answer, “There is nothing done for him?” May we live our lives by bringing honor to God by honoring others!

Instead of feeling sorry for ourselves, we ought to telling others, “You have been a great blessing to me. And now, there is something that God has laid upon my heart so that I might be a blessing to you!”

Once upon a time, Cuthbert of Lindesfarne, went forth from his monastery to preach to the poor. He took with him a young lad as his only attendant. Together they walked along the dusty way. The heat of the noonday sun beat upon their heads, and fatigue overcame them.  ``Son,'' said Cuthbert, ``do you know any one on the road, whom we may ask for food and a place in which to rest?''  "I was just thinking the same thing," answered the lad, "but I know nobody on the road who will entertain us. Alas! why did we not bring along provisions? How can we proceed on our long journey without them?"  "My son," answered Cuthbert, "learn to have trust in God, who never will suffer those to perish of hunger who believe in Him."  Then looking up and seeing an eagle flying in the air, he added, "Do you see the eagle yonder? It is possible for God to feed us by means of this bird."  While they were talking thus, they came to a river, and, lo! the eagle stood on the bank.  "Son," said Cuthbert, "run and see what provision God has made for us by his handmaid the bird."  The lad ran, and found a good-sized fish that the eagle had just caught. This he brought to the saint.  "What have you done?" exclaimed the good man, "why have you not given a part to God's handmaid? Cut the fish in two pieces, and give her one, as her service well deserves."  The lad did as he was bidden, and the eagle, taking the half fish in her beak, flew away.  Then entering a neighboring village, Cuthbert gave the other half to a peasant to cook, and while the lad and the villagers feasted, the good saint preached to them the Word of God.