Give Thanks to the LORD!

What does the word "thankful" actually mean? Encarta defines the word thankful:
1. feeling gratitude: feeling or expressing gratitude
2. glad about something: glad or relieved about something
"Praise the LORD! Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Who can utter the mighty acts of the LORD? Who can declare all His praise?" Psalm 106:1-2
This Thanksgiving take the time to view the subject of "thankfulness" with a new focus.
How has God blessed you this past year?
Somtimes God doesn't answer our prayers the way that we think that He should. We forget that God sees our situation much better than we do and we can trust that he always has our best interest in mind.
Do you ever find it difficult to be thankful? Sometimes situations in our lives can make being thankful seem impossible. However we can always find reasons to be thankful. Knowing that God is in control and that he has a purpose for our lives is a reason to be thankful. God blesses us in so many ways and often we fail to see just what He has done in our lives.

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Phil. 4:6

Shaniya Davis Found Dead; Mother Turned Little Girl Into Sex Slave, Say Police

That was a recent headline in the local paper and as I read the article tears flowed down my face. As I looked at the photograph of the beautiful, innocent child I became angry. How could a mother do such horrible things to this child? Evil, quite simply, will always be with us. So what are we going to do about it? Bad things happen to good people and good things happen to bad people. Precious innocent children will suffer in this world. Some will suffer with a terminal illness and others will be kidnapped and often murdered. On the other hand convicted felons will survive only to return to lives of crime after jail terms. God did not promise us justice in the world but he did demand it from us. In the Torah, we are commanded "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a life for a life." This has never been read literally in Jewish interpretation. Rather, the Torah teaches us that you are to exact justice (tzedek: balance/fairness/equity). But how could one ever exact justice in the case of Shaniya Davis?

When Jesus comes again, the glory of God will be abundantly manifest as he saves those who believe and visits justice on the wicked (2 Thes 1:4–12). For it is written, “Vengeance is mine,” says the Lord, “I will repay.”

There’s freedom in that truth. When you know that God will make all things right, and when He is done making all things right and dealing with every injustice, every atrocity, we will praise Him.