Today in the Word for November 26 - December 2
Today in the Word
Thursday Nov 26, 2020
Did you know that the tradition of thanking God before Thanksgiving dinner was biblical? Welcome to The Word with Pastor David. Paul has been having trouble with some false teachers in the church. They are saying certain foods are forbidden for Christians to eat. So, he gives his teammate Timothy this advice in I Timothy 4:3-4:
“They…order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth. For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving…”
Paul was not thinking about American Thanksgiving turkey when he said these words to Timothy, but the truth applies to our Thursday event. God created food to be ‘received with thanksgiving’ by believers. The things we eat, including the spread we will consume today are a good gift from God himself, and they are to be ‘received with thanksgiving’.
So, when we bow and give thanks before we eat today, we are doing something biblical. And I would contend that giving thanks before every meal (a practice very much on the decline in the US) is not just an old religious tradition. It is a biblical practice—encouraged by the Apostle Paul himself! So, give thanks and eat!
And that is the Word from Deer Lodge Assembly on the corner of 5th and Montana.
Today in the Word
Friday Nov 27, 2020
Are we finding it hard to think of what to be thankful for this Thanksgiving season? After all, this has been a year of much loss and difficulty. Welcome to The Word with Pastor David. David is in difficulty in Psalm 69:1-3,29-30:
“…the waters have come up to my neck. I sink in the miry depths, where there is no foothold. I have come into the deep waters…I am worn out calling for help; my throat is parched. My eyes fail, looking for my God.”
Yet a few verses later in Psalm 69:29-30, he sings:
“But as for me, afflicted and in pain—may your salvation, God, protect me. I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving.”
David is in it up to his neck. He feels God has not been answering his prayers. Yet he sings a song of thanksgiving anyway! Can we do the same? It may feel in your situation that you are treading water and about to go down for the 3rd time, yet there are reasons to thank God. Thanksgiving can well up in us for the good that God brings our way. But this is a call from David to thank God in spite of circumstances.
Your situation may be dire, but thank God anyway. You are in pain, but sing thanks and praise to God anyway.
And that’s the Word. Tune in to future devotions for some specifics of what we can thank God for in difficult times.
Today in The Word
Monday Nov 30, 2020
King David had some tough times. What does he thank God for? Welcome to The Word with Pastor David. In Psalm 100:3-4, David sings:
“Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his…Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.”
David spent years on the run with a price on his head. He experienced rejection and malice. Yet he calls on us to sing thanks to the Lord anyway. Why? Because God is our Maker. We are not an accident. We are not a random result. We are made by the Creator.
In this time of pandemic, many things can seem wrong. And we can feel quite isolated. But we belong to our Creator. Our Maker cares about us. We aren’t a random happenstance. And that truth is something we can thank God for regardless of how difficult times are. We belong to Our Maker, and we give thanks for that.
And that’s The Word from Deer Lodge Assembly on the corner of 5th and Montana.
Today in The Word
Tuesday Dec 1, 2020
King David had some tough times. What does he thank God for? Welcome to The Word with Pastor David. In Psalm 100:3-4, David sings:
“Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.”
David was is a lot of difficulty for many years, yet he calls on us to sing thanks to the Lord anyway. Why?
He states, “…we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.” God is our Good Shepherd. We are not left alone to our own devices. He cares for us like a shepherd cares for his flock. He looks after us. He steers us back when we begin to stray. He leads us to places that are for our good.
In the midst of pandemic, we can thank God for being our Good Shepherd. We can thank God that we are under his constant care. We are his flock.
And that’s The Word from Pastor David of Deer Lodge Assembly on the corner of 5th and Montana.
Today in the Word
Wednesday Dec 2, 2020
King David was a thankful person. What does he thank God for? Welcome to The Word with Pastor David. In Psalm 100:4-5, David sings:
“Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.”
David has many problems for a season. But he thanks God for his permanent character. God is good all the time. God’s love and faithfulness will never waver. They are permanent.
We live in a world of transient faithfulness. Relationships, businesses, and the approval of society all seem to come with an expiration date. But God’s faithfulness has no expiration date. His love for us endures forever amid a sea of temporary liaisons.
And that is worth being thankful for. Circumstances change, but God’s character never wavers. We can trust his goodness toward us all the time. And so, we sing thanks to God along with David despite the circumstances.
And that’s The Word from Pastor David of Deer Lodge Assembly.