Thanksgiving as Worship

Alright, well, a couple things before we I jump into our message for this morning. First of all, I want to give you a bit of an update on how things are going.

Last year, of course we were in a very unfortunate situation with the tenant we had in our school building, which resulted in a lawsuit. That was resolved, the new tenants moved in about a year ago now, December was their first month, so they have been with us for a year.

I have heard amazing things from the community about them. In fact, just the other day, a mother was here picking up her child and stopped Kelley and thanked her for giving her the information for the school because it’s going so well. They have incredible hearts. Their desire is to be the best school in south Florida focused on kids on the Autism spectrum, through the school, their therapy company and their non-profit foundation that focuses on helping families.

Here’s where I want your prayers. Because they are a new entity, when they applied for their certificate of use from the Miami-Dade fire department they were told that new regulation stated the building needs a fire suppression system, a sprinkler system, which the building does not have. This is a very big project, and as a tenant rather than an owner, they had to seriously consider their options, as did I. I am so grateful for the relationship that we are building with the owners of the school as we were able to come to an agreement that we felt it was not 100% their responsibility, being on a 5 year lease to upgrade the building to that level, and it was not 100% our responsibility as the owner of the building, because we don’t need it to conduct our business. So we came to the agreement that we would split the cost 50/50, and we agreed we would extend their lease by an additional 5 years. I’m working with our amazing lawyer to update the lease parameters and make sure we have everything done correctly.

Two points of prayer: First, we want favor and grace from all of the governing bodies involved to ensure that not only the school can continue to do their work as this project is happening, because there are timelines involved that with the way things have happened, it’s completely unrealistic. Second, this is a very big financial project. The whole project is estimated to be around $60,000. Which, in the long run, having the school here is of financial benefit, but this is money we did not intend or wish to spend, especially at this point. As I said, they have agreed to pay for 50% of that cost, but still requires us to put forward about $30,000.

Financially pray that God gives me the wisdom how to navigate things to the best of our ability. I’ve said this before, my belief is that generosity, giving, and the concept of tithing, which is the biblical giving of 10% of our income to the house of God, these are opportunities. God blesses whether we give or not. God is gracious to us regardless of whether we feel able to give or not. Grace is undeserved favor, unmerited favor. So as soon as we are told that we have to do something to receive it, we are missing the point! BUT, like I said, giving is an opportunity to step into. When God invites us to give, His promise is that it is like a seed going into soil that will reap a harvest. When God invites us to tithe, it’s with the promise that we will financially and physically prosper. And this has been my personal experience. God has looked after us.

The bible says very clearly we should never be coerced or manipulated into giving. So when we talk about finances here at Cutler Bay Worship Center. When we mention giving. That is our intention, that you personally decide, and exercise your own faith in choosing to take God at his word. Paul says, everyone should decide in their heart what to give. Personal decision. It’s between you and God. Kelley and I tithe 10%, we always have, and we probably always will. It’s our way of honoring God with what we know He’s given to us.

Another situation we have had recently is with our air conditioning on the property. Of course that takes maintenance, and a few weeks ago I came into this building and it was HOT. Some things need repair. In the other building there was a mishap that caused some damage to the system, and that was a pretty big repair. How many know, we can’t do anything in south Florida without AC. I know, we need to work on making sure it’s not TOO cold in here, but I think that’s better than it being too hot!

So, be praying for these situations. I think collectively us asking God for favor and wisdom is as powerful as giving, and I also believe that our generosity is a conversation God wants us to have with Him. I think as a parent one of my greatest joys is when I see my daughter who is using my money that I’ve given her, decides she wants to be generous with it. It does something to my heart.

I share these things this morning for two reasons. Like I said, we need your prayers and support in these areas. But also, I want you to be aware of what goes on here. When you do give, I want you to know that we don’t take that lightly and we do our absolute best to be faithful with those finances. We are individually called to be wise with our finances, but we are also as a church called to that. So I try to be as transparent and open about where we are at. Also, if you ever have any questions or concerns, come talk to me. I’ll do my best to be an open book. And I mean that. Conversation doesn’t make me feel awkward. Questions don’t make me feel awkward. If you wonder why we do something. I will have an answer for you, OR, I’ll let you know I’ll find an answer for you.

The same is true with what we teach here. If you hear me say something that you need some explanation on, you have options. You can come talk to me. I WANT you to come talk to me. There’s a good chance I get something wrong at some point.

For instance, a few weeks ago I said the Proverbs 31 wife goes hunting in the morning. There’s some speculation that this isn’t actually true. I’m going to defend my position because the word used for “food” is actually prey… BUT, it does NOT specifically say that she goes out hunting. Ok, I might get it wrong from time to time, and I’m ok with learning in the process as long as you’re good with it too!

WELL, I want to start his morning by sharing a testimony with you. Something God did in our lives this week that I want to give Him glory for. As some of you know, we bought our house this week, which we are pretty excited about. But ya know, we’ve been talking about working at not worrying, and not complaining, and choosing to give thanks when it’s easier to do something else. And in the midst of reading and learning and reminding myself of what I should be doing, how many know you get opportunity to do the opposite?

Right? When we ask God to teach us patience, we suddenly get given opportunity to BE patient. When we ask God for character, we find ourselves in situations where we can prove our character. And so we’ve been asking God to help us be grateful in the face of complaint, confident in the face of worry, full of faith in the moments of anxiety and leading up to closing on the house I noticed this thought trying to creep in, “Ya know, you’re turning 40 in a couple months… and you’re about to sign a 30 year loan… that puts you at 70… close to the rest of your life ya know, and with your health, who knows...”

I’m just being honest. These are the things that were trying to get into my head. NOW, remember what I said last week. If it doesn’t line up with the character of God expressed in His word, the it’s not Him saying it, which means it’s got to be coming from somewhere else. And in the moment I’m not in a conversation, and this isn’t something anyone has said to me, so it’s either the father of lies, or me recycling something, and both of those I have complete control over. I can CHOOSE to tell the devil I’m not listening, and CHOOSE to tell myself God’s truth. And I can also choose to tell myself to stop thinking these things BY choosing to think about something else.

Here’s the absolutely wonderful thing about God. Sometimes we get these little reminders, physical reminders that help us in those moments. I don’t ever check the mail in the morning, maybe once every few months. And on Tuesday morning I decided to grab the mail as I was leaving to bring Kaylee to school. I put it on the seat next to me, drove to her school and then went over to Winn-Dixie to buy a couple turkeys and some things I needed for dinner. I get home, bring everything inside and throw the mail on the counter, no intention to look at it until later. But, I decide, meh, I’ll flip through it and throw out the junk mail. Well there’s a letter from Wells Fargo. And it’s got that sort of official check looking paper that I can see through the envelop window, but, we don’t have any dealings with Wells Fargo, so I just assume it’s a credit offer and they’re using that type of paper to entice me to open it.

I think maybe I should just rip it up, but I open it, and it’s a letter that says, “When you signed for your mortgage with Wells Faro for 10831 Laurnet Place (Raleigh), you paid a rate lock charge. We have decided to refund you that amount, WITH INTEREST, PLUS, because you have been without this money for this time, we are adding money to it...” And the letter was accompanied by a check for just over $2,000. This is from a home we sold more than 10 years ago. We’ve lived in 3 countries since that point. How Wells Fargo even got our address is a complete mystery to me.

This was like God’s little way of saying, “Hey, don’t forget, every little thing is gonna be alright.” So, I just want to make known the awesomeness of God in that situation. That was God. He had his hand in that. No doubt in my mind.

Well, it is / / thanksgiving week! We are about to embark on the long honored tradition of going around the table and telling everyone what you are thankful for. And maybe that’s a good thing that at least we’re doing it once a year, right?

I think that’s one of the biggest points that I always come back to during this season, and as I prepare for the series we do on this topic, is that the idea of giving thanks just can not be relegated to a single day, or once a year, or one month out of twelve. But giving thanks is meant to be a lifestyle.

I’ve said this many times before, but I’m pretty sure that one of our biggest problems as humans is that we / / forget. We forget to be grateful. We forget what God has done. We forget that Jesus paid for it all on the cross. We forget the Holy Spirit, the same power that raised Christ from the dead is alive inside of us. And as a result, we live like those things didn’t happen. We live like we need to take charge. We live like we need to handle the issues and problems in life that God doesn’t intend for us to handle.

Yes, there are plenty of things we can deal with, plenty of things we can take care of, but we are not, and will not ever be God. And His purpose for us is that we rely on Him and His grace to thrive in this life. Paul said, when I am weak, then I am strong. Not because he was made strong, but because he embraced the weakness he had to experience the strength of God.

So, reminding ourselves of who God is, what He has said He will do, and what He has done in our lives before may just be the most powerful thing we have available to us. And one of the greatest ways to do that is to be thankful. Because when we choose to be thankful we force ourselves to find in ourselves what we are truly thankful for.

How many times have we said something to the effect of, “I know I don’t say this enough, but...” And proceed to tell someone how we feel, or what we think.

We know that relationship takes intention. We know that our earthly relationships take work. Kelley and I celebrated our 14th anniversary this past week. And we had a wonderful day, and we were able to finally close on our house the day after, which was close enough to be considered a pretty awesome anniversary gift. But in the process of planning the day I made sure a couple weeks in advance that Kaylee would be looked after so I could take Kelley out for dinner, we wouldn’t be rushed, we could just enjoy the evening. I took the time to think about what she could want, would want. We don’t have a lot, so it’s not like we’re buying each other huge extravagant gifts, although this year we both claimed buying each other a house! But I planned, I thought about it. I drove up to Dadeland and got a Nothing Bundt Cake, I stopped at the flower shop and had them make her a nice little bouquet of roses. And then I came home and said, “Alright, both of you go get ready, Kaylee, you’re going to Bella’s, Kelley, you’re coming with me.”

But here’s a little window into my life... Kelley admitted later that she honestly thought absolutely nothing was happening for our anniversary.

Why? Because if I’m honest, I’m not always the best at being intentional. Oh sure, I work hard. I love Kelley more than anyone in this world could, and I’m pretty sure she knows that. I provide for her to the best of my ability. I look after her. I make sure she is TOLD that she is loved, and I do my best to make sure our home is as peaceful, loving and healthy as possible. BUT, I would be missing it all if I didn’t recognize that isn’t all she needs. Relationships take work. They take listening to each other, talking through what our desires and needs are. Kelley NEEDS to be taken out. I don’t always understand it. I certainly fail to plan for it. But if I truly want our relationship to succeed, that needs to become a priority. And there have been seasons where we’ve been better at it, and there have been seasons where we recognize, “Wow, we haven’t had a date night in a really long time.”

And I’ll admit, I’ve not always been the best at it, and my INTENTION is to do better, but we all know intention is only as good as follow through. So, I need to make these things a priority. I need to focus and invest in what I have because I cherish it, and I want it to grow and succeed.

If you’ve been reading along in our daily bible reading this past week we read the book of Philippians, and a couple verses stuck out to me on Friday morning, in Philippians 1:10-11 says, / / ...I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may live pure and blameless lives until the day of Christ’s return. May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation - the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ - for this will bring much glory and praise to God.

And then he says in Philippians 2:12-14, and remember, when this was written it didn’t have chapter and verse, so this is a letter to be read in its entirety, he says, / / Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. Do everything without complaining and arguing...

So, what’s he saying here. He’s saying:

/ / Focus on what really matters.

/ / Your salvation should be producing fruit, and that fruit is:

That fruit is to live / / righteous lives before God because that’s what he’s set you free for.

That fruit is to be / / transformed by Christ, righteous character produced in your life BY Jesus Christ.

/ / Follow the instruction in the gospel.

/ / work hard to show these results of your salvation, which is, obeying God with deep reverence and fear.

WHY? because when he was around it was easy, but now that he’s not, what can happen? You can easily forget, so pay even more attention to it. Because God WANTS to work in you and give you the desire AND the power to do what pleases him, but if it’s not a priority, it just won’t happen. If we’re not paying attention, and trying, then how will it happen? God doesn’t MAKE US do things. He gives us free will.

And then Paul wraps it all up with, so, do everything without complaining and arguing, because that will just mess it all up.

Just like our relationships here on earth take work, our relationship with God and our lives in Christ, our salvation itself, takes work. We are not saved BY our works, but BY HIS salvation we are empowered to fulfill the good works of Christ.

And we’re encouraged to pay close attention, it’s even MORE important now that I’m way, Paul says. It’s hardest to do right when no one is looking, but that’s the true test of character, being the same whether we are being overseen or not!

And this is the same letter that Paul says one of our main scriptures throughout this series, Philippians 4:6, / / Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.

We looked at that last week, broke down those various points within that scripture of how to live a life of thanksgiving.

So this is all contained in this great letter that Paul is writing to the Church in Philippi. Encouraging the church to live lives of thanksgiving and remembering what they’ve been taught, living out their lives in honor and reverence to God and following and obeying what He’s instructed us to do.

Today we’re wrapping this series up by giving our thanksgiving a little direction. The first week we looked at the power of our words, that we can do harm by our words, and we can produce life through our words, so let’s choose wisely what we say. Then last week we focused primarily on using our words for life, taking that one step further. If we want changed lives, there’s a process to it. We don’t just recognize we’ve done things wrong, but we repent, ask God to help us, change us, transform us, and then work at living that as a lifestyle of speaking life rather than complaining.

Well, this week, we want to bring even more focus to that. Yes, on Thursday this week we are going to be giving thanks, we’re going to go around that table and hopefully be first in line so we can be sweet and say we are most thankful for our family. But it’s true I am so thankful for the things we have in this life, thankful for friends, thankful for good health, thankful for a roof over our heads and all that good stuff, right?

But today, I want you to ask yourself the question,/ / Where am I directing my gratitude? I want to focus on where we direct that thanks to. It’s one thing to be grateful, it’s another to give thanks to the one who made it happen. Because the power found in giving thanks is multi-faceted. First it is good to be thankful because it redirects our words, that’s a very powerful thing. Like I’ve said, it’s hard to be angry, and resentful when we’re focusing on being thankful for someone. I may WANT to stay angry at you, but if I’m forcing myself to think about why I’m grateful for you, it makes it a whole lot harder to stay mad at you.

This might sound terrible, but this is just reality, ok. Friday was a really long day at the end of a really long week, after a super long weekend where we did Fall Festival. So, Friday, I had been working all day, then we went to Mater Bay Academy to pick up the food they had collected in their food drives in their classroom, which, amazing! Incredible. Such a huge help to families in our community. I truly am incredibly grateful for situations like that. That relationship was introduced to us by one of the Cutler Bay Police officers I had connected with when we initially started our food distributions here, and last year they partnered with the school to collect food, but they didn’t know where to send it, so he called me and said, “I thought of you because you’re helping people.” Amazing!

I’m incredibly grateful for that relationship with the Cutler Bay Police, AND now this relationship that is growing at the school, and of course all these incredible kids and families who provided the food. But, long day, we picked up the food, brought it back to the church, set it out so it would be ready for Saturday morning. And finally got home about 6 o’clock, got some food ready, sat down, I’m taking my first bite and Kelley says, “Scott just texted, he’s got 5 turkeys to bring to the church...”

This would be a good thing, right? We’ve asked people to bring turkeys, someone is bringing turkeys, this is a good thing. But, my humanity kicked in, and all I could think in that moment was how this little bit of information was going to effect ME… selfishness, tiredness, and pretty much the opposite of Paul’s encouragement to do everything without complaining… out the window. I literally said, “But I’m not going out again...”

This is exactly what we’ve been talking about in these last couple weeks. This takes work! This is why Paul says, Work HARD to show the results of your salvation… We catch ourselves, we recognize what just happened isn’t what we want. I felt a little gross for reacting that way. Sure, I get it’s been a long day and I’m tired and I want to eat, and none of those things are bad, but I don’t want to complain when I should be giving thanks. Paul even says in Romans 7:15, / / I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate. So at least I’m in good company!

But, I do want to change, So, in that moment, me and God had a little heart to heart because I heard myself preaching to myself the words of the bible, do everything without complaining.... and I stopped myself, and said in my mind and in my heart, “this is a really good thing...”

And like I said, I get that I was tired. I get it had been a long day. It’s not like I needed to be excited to have to leave my dinner and go do something, but here’s the thing. I didn’t even have to do that. All he wanted was the key to go over and drop them off. I didn’t have to do anything. But when our humanity takes over we can become a little irrational. This is why the bible continually over and over and over again encourages us to not complain, not grumble, but not just that, but also to focus on something else.

After Paul writes in Philippians 4:6 to not worry, but instead pray, tell God what you need and thank him, he says this in vs 8, / / …one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all you have learned and received from me - everything you heard from me and saw me doing...

Why? Because this takes intentional living. Intentionally and consistently taking our eyes off of our humanity and what we may want to complain about, and to focus on what is right, what is good, what is wonderful.

This goes back to this idea of willful self-denial, doesn’t it? Choosing God’s way over my own. Choosing God’s standard above what I desire.

And thanksgiving isn’t just a good thing. It isn’t just a redirect from the negative, but it’s actually worship. When we recognize that we have what we have because a loving God is in our lives, we begin to direct that thanks to Him. It’s one thing to be grateful that we have things, it’s another thing to be grateful to the one who gave us those things. This is why Paul says thank God for all he has done. Don’t just be thankful. Don’t just have a heart of gratitude that you have what you need, but direct that thanks to the One who provides.

We read last week that Jesus said, Don’t worry about anything, how much are a few sparrows worth, hardly anything, and yet God looks after them, how much more will he look after you.

Gratitude towards God.

This is worship. This is praise to Him. This is giving Him glory. So, today we’re taking a few minutes and looking at / / Thanksgiving as Worship.

/ / 1. Thanksgiving keeps us humble.

The truest form of worship is to recognize that God is God, we are not. We are created by God. To recognize God as creator has to be up there with the highest form of worship. Think about how hurtful it would be if our own children decided to disown us. I hope and pray none of you have gone through that sort of thing, but think of the heartache, just for a moment. Now, think of what God goes through on the daily when people consistently believe He has nothing to do with their existence.

To choose to honor God for who He is, while recognizing who we are, is truly a worshipful thing.

And when I choose to give thanks to God for who He is, I very quickly am confronted with who I am. And it forces me to remember that I need him. Choosing to recognize that I need God keeps me humble.

We’ve read it over the last couple weeks, 1 Thessalonians 5:18 says, / / Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.

This is God’s will. That word, will, means desire or pleasure, it’s what someone wishes for someone to do. Strong’s bible dictionary says, “of the purpose of God to bless mankind through Christ, of what God wishes to be done by us...”

It’s God’s desire that we are thankful, that we are giving thanks, because he wants to bless us, and thanksgiving opens the door for blessing. And when we are grateful and thankful toward Him, we position ourselves for Him to act in our lives. It’s like a reminder that tells us, “ask again...” It’s totally two fold. I am giving thanks, but at the same time, there’s a receiving going on.

This is why I like thanksgiving as a holiday so much, and why I choose to take time to preach on the subject, because it is a good reminder. In the Old Testament we see over and over again that God would set up festivals and celebrations to commemorate certain events that he told Israel to observe and pass down to their future generations. This helps us remember what He has done, and then we can choose in that moment to be thankful for it, give Him thanks, which reminds us of Who He is, and who we are in relation to Him, which in turn builds an expectation for what He can do for us in the moment.

If he’s done it before, He can do it again!

/ / 2. Giving Thanks positions us before God.

Psalm 100:1-5 says / / Shout with Joy to the Lord, all the earth! Worship the Lord with gladness. Come before him, singing with joy. Acknowledge that the Lord is God! He made us, and we are his. We are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation.

/ / Enter his gates with thanksgiving. go into his courts with praise.

We’re talking about the King of Kings here. Remember the story I told of Queen Esther a few weeks ago, that even the queen had to hang out in the outer courts of the king and hope to be noticed. She wasn’t allowed to just waltz right in. But Hebrews tells us to boldly approach the throne of our Gracious God.

When I read “Enter his gates with thanksgiving”, I don’t read that as saying, “When you enter his gates, you better be thankful.” But I read it as, “Thanksgiving, or giving thanks, being grateful and expressing that gratitude toward God, is the very Key to entering His gates.”

When we begin to give thanks. When we open our mouths and worship God by giving Him honor and praise for who He is and what He’s done, we position ourselves before Him. This is an act of boldly approaching His throne.

***God, right here, I have something to tell you!…***

Enter his courts, or go into his courts, with praise. These acts, giving thanks and praising God, are keys to accessing and coming into the very presence of God.

/ / 3. Thanksgiving declares the goodness of God.

This is pretty straight forward here, but giving thanks declares God’s greatness. It is an expressed account of something He’s done. God, I thank you for providing financially for me this week that gives me confidence that you are with us and look after us. I am proclaiming His goodness.

Not only does that help ME, but it is worship. The definition of / / worship is the feeling or the expression of reverence and adoration toward someone. We are expressing reverence, God, you did this, and I am thanking you for it. God, You are this, and I want to thank you. You show yourself faithful in this way, I am grateful.

Remember, / / being thankful starts with choosing to think of WHY we are thankful. We are choosing to be grateful for something, and in this case, directing that gratitude toward someone.

I am not just happy I have money in my pocket. I’m not just glad a check came in the mail. I am grateful because I recognize that this is God’s way of showing me that He is always faithful, and I am showing that gratitude by giving HIM the thanks for it.

A lot of people enjoy the blessing of God, without turning to be grateful to Him for it.

This is a bit of a side note, but here’s one of the main issues we have in our world today. You see so much confusion and frustration in the world. People at odds with each other. Well, Romans 1:21 says, / / …they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks, [even if they knew Him]. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools.

Right there, the root of so many of the issues we see in the world today. When we disregard God, when we choose to think we are the source of our lives, we begin to become confused. But, giving thanks keeps us grounded. When I choose to give thanks to God I am choosing again to ground myself in the truth of who He is.

/ / 4. Be specific

I want to close with this thought today. Be specific. Be specific about what you’re giving thanks for. Whether that is to God, or to someone in front of you. Be specific. Push yourself and stretch yourself to think and feel what it is you want to say.

Those of you who are parents that have had to tell their child to go apologize to someone for something know this line all too well. Right, your child says, “sorry”, and you can tell they are doing it because they’re being forced to, what do we say? “No, no, no, try again… What are you sorry for?” We want them to be specific because we want them to connect the dots. It’s nice to be sorry, but sorry for what, are you truly connecting with the emotion and the need to repair this relationship?

The flip side is true. Kelley says I tell her I love her too much. So, when I would say, “I love you...” she doesn’t respond with, “awww… I love you too...” …no, she started responding with... “why?”

There is something about being specific with our love, our gratitude and our emotions. In fact, this works in all areas. Especially with our frustrations. It doesn’t help a person you’re in relationship with to simply say you’re upset. You need to explain what happened, why you feel hurt and what hurts. Be specific.

I said earlier, relationships take work. And we have to understand the other person can’t read your mind. OH GOSH, PRO MARRIAGE TIP!!! If you’re married or have a significant other in the room or if you’re joining us from your home, I want you to turn to your person and I give you permission to say to them this morning, “I can’t read your mind. But that means I give you permission to say what you need to say. Get to the root of it. I won’t mock your emotions. I won’t put your feelings down. I will listen. I will do my best to understand. And if I don’t. Please be patient with me and let’s not walk away from each other… but work at repairing our relationship at every turn!”

Let’s work at really getting to the roots of things, both good and bad. You can’t heal if you don’t recognize you’re hurting!

Let’s be specific with our gratitude.

Let’s be mindful in your thanksgiving.

/ / What are we really thankful for? With our friends, our family, coworkers, with God? And don’t stay silent, let them know. Talk with them. Tell them.

Have an incredible thanksgiving week. Enjoy family, enjoy friends. Don’t settle for, “I’m thankful for family...” tell them WHY you’re thankful for them! And take a moment this week to thank God for all HE has done.