A Thanksgiving Prayer
Devote yourselves to prayer; stay alert in it with thanksgiving. (Colossians 4:2)
This morning one of the things I am deeply thankful for is serving in the most healthy, warm, loving church family we have ever been a part of. We love the people of Grace Church. We love the deacons of Grace Church. And we are particularly thankful for and greatly love the pastors and elders of Grace Church.
One of those elders, and close and dear friend, Paul Inge, wrote and shared a prayer of thanksgiving in our church services this last Sunday. It certainly accomplished its appointed end to help me, as part of the congregation, to communicate my thanksgiving to “the gift-giver of this world, the author and creator of all the life that it contains…the one who is the very essence of goodness.”
I asked Paul if he would share it with me, and he kindly did. I’ve attached it below for your use, dear reader, as a way to give thanks. Maybe you’ll pray it over your table laden with all kinds of meats, sweets, and treats.
And a very Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!
To the gift-giver of this world, the author & creator of all the life that it contains.
To the one who is the very essence of goodness. You took dust from the ground and
breathed on it, and it became human life in your image. You fused your likeness into
the DNA of our bodies, so that we would be irrevocably and undeniably valuable, every
one of us on this earth, and every one in this place today. We did nothing to make this
so, it is your good will that made this so. In consideration of this reality, the most fitting
and right emotion and expression we could have is one of genuine and full-hearted
gratitude. A kind of gratitude that radiates from the soul and manifests as a smile on
the face, as a song of praise, as a kind word, as a humble posture towards others and
an eager and glad submission to our maker.
You, our Father, are deserving of at least this. So it is our joy to offer you full
hearts of thanksgiving through expressions of our praise to your worth.
And let us continue to in reflection, for your goodness toward us is shown in
countless ways so eager are you that we would not miss it. You paint the sky with a
magic paintbrush every morning and night so that we would stop in wonder. You grace
our tables with an abundance of food and drink so that we can taste your goodness as
it fills and warms us from the inside. You infuse our hearts with the desire for and
capacity to love, which is a foundational reflection of who you are! In fact, your love is
boundless. You went searching in love for us, these lost sheep, helpless and hopeless
against the wolves of the world, and the wolf within our souls. You gave your life and
your pure blood in an ultimate redemption act because we were too blind, stubborn
and misguided to ever find redemption on our own. You have invited us into your
family and given us your name because you are generous of heart and have a grand
vision of who your family will be. And you have crafted an inheritance that will be the
very fullness of joy, peace, love, truth and goodness in the bright radiance of your
presence for all eternity.
For all of this and more, we are compelled to live lives of gratitude to you our Maker,
and share joyful thanksgivings as a trademark of our lives, lived for you Jesus, our
Maker, our Savior and our Friend. Amen
