{"id":4721,"date":"2014-11-26T18:02:27","date_gmt":"2014-11-26T22:02:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/?p=4721"},"modified":"2014-12-12T22:23:06","modified_gmt":"2014-12-13T02:23:06","slug":"thanksgiving-turkey-canadian-geese-112314","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/?p=4721","title":{"rendered":"Thanksgiving Turkey & Canadian Geese (11\/23\/14)"},"content":{"rendered":"
\u00a0Pastor Jim’s sermon on Sunday November 23, 2014 came as we neared the Thanksgiving holiday.\u00a0 As we anticipate the aroma of turkey, stuffing, and the vision of piles of mashed potatoes, what are we really thankful for?\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span><\/address>\n
Hit the play button (the recording is from the 2nd service), scroll\u00a0 down,\u00a0 and follow along.<\/span><\/address>\n

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The text was based on Psalm 100 and on 1 Corinthians 1:4-9.\u00a0 In the recording, Pastor Jim read Psalm 100 from the Living Bible (“Life Application Bible”) but moved to the King James version for the 1 Corinthians passage.\u00a0 Open the drop down boxes to follow the scripture readings…<\/p>\n

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Psalm 100<\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t

New Living Bible<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

1 Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth!<\/span><\/p>\n

2 Worship the Lord with gladness. Come before him, singing with joy.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

3 Acknowledge that the Lord is God! He made us, and we are his. We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.<\/span><\/p>\n

4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving;\u00a0 go into his courts with praise.\u00a0\u00a0 Give thanks to him and praise his name.<\/span><\/p>\n

5 For the Lord is good.\u00a0 His unfailing love continues forever,\u00a0 and his faithfulness continues to each generation.<\/span><\/p>\n

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New King James Version<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

1 Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands!<\/span><\/p>\n

2 Serve the Lord with gladness;\u00a0 Come before His presence with singing.<\/span><\/p>\n

3 Know that the Lord, He is God;\u00a0 It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;\u00a0 We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.<\/span><\/p>\n

4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,\u00a0 And into His courts with praise.\u00a0 Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.<\/span><\/p>\n

5 For the Lord is good;\u00a0\u00a0 His mercy is everlasting,\u00a0 And His truth endures to all generations.<\/span><\/p>\n

Holy Bible, New Living Translation \u00ae, copyright \u00a9 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n

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1 Corinthians<\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t

New King James Version<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

4 I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus,<\/span><\/p>\n

5 that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge,<\/span><\/p>\n

6 even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you,\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

7 so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ,\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

8 who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.<\/span><\/p>\n

9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.<\/span><\/p>\n

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New Living Bible<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

4 I always thank my God for you and for the gracious gifts he has given you, now that you belong to Christ Jesus.<\/span><\/p>\n

5 Through him, God has enriched your church in every way\u2014with all of your eloquent words and all of your knowledge.<\/span><\/p>\n

6 This confirms that what I told you about Christ is true.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

7 Now you have every spiritual gift you need as you eagerly wait for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

8 He will keep you strong to the end so that you will be free from all blame on the day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

9 God will do this, for he is faithful to do what he says, and he has invited you into partnership with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.<\/span><\/p>\n

Holy Bible, New Living Translation \u00ae, copyright \u00a9 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Stay At the Nest…<\/span><\/h3>\n

The story is told of a female goose.\u00a0 She was nesting some recently laid eggs when she got up, crossed the street,\u00a0 and got hit by a car.\u00a0 The driver stopped, gathered the injured goose, and took her to the vet.\u00a0 As she was on the mend, the goose’s mate “kept the home fires going.”\u00a0 Mr. Goose was faithful.\u00a0 He didn’t flee and run at the first time of trouble.\u00a0 He guarded the nest and waited for his mate to return.<\/p>\n

Geese are not only monogamous, they are faithful.\u00a0 They don’t worry or cut and run.\u00a0 They hang in there until the end.<\/p>\n

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It’s About God’s Faithfulness, Not our Stuff (ing)…<\/span><\/h3>\n

Sometimes we get so focused on what we have or on what we can or can’t do, that we leave God’s faithfulness out of the mix.\u00a0 What are you thankful for?\u00a0 For most of us when we’re asked that question we turn to the things we have or to the people around us.\u00a0 But have you ever been thankful for the things that someone else has?\u00a0 Take a look at what Paul said in verse 4 of our reading:<\/p>\n

I always thank my God for you and for the gracious gifts he has given you, now that you belong to Christ Jesus.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

“For the gift God has given You”?!?\u00a0 Paul is demonstrating true agape.\u00a0 Thankfulness isn’t just about what we have.\u00a0Thankfulness is\u00a0about what God has done for OTHERS.\u00a0 \u00a0Thankfulness is for the character of our God.\u00a0 For a God who is faithful to us and who gives so many gifts.\u00a0 With this focus, it doesn’t really matter who receives the gifts.\u00a0 We are thankful for God for His nature and for His “Goose-Like” faithfulness.<\/p>\n

Yes we’re thankful for the stuff and stuffing… but what do we do about that?\u00a0 But are we doing our part to be that blessing to others?\u00a0 Because God is faithful, as we look at Him gratitude will flow out of our hearts.\u00a0 Unless we consider God’s faithfulness we’ll fall into the trap of feeling we are entitled to the things God gives us.\u00a0 Instead, we need to be grateful for everything God gives us.<\/p>\n

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“Faithfulness is one of the defining attributes of the Divine.”<\/span><\/p>\n

-Dr. Leonard Sweeton<\/span><\/div><\/div>\n

God can’t help but be faithful.\u00a0 And out of that faithfulness, He asks us to be faithful in return.\u00a0 and out of that faithfulness will flow a heart of gratitude.\u00a0 God’s faithfulness give us hope.\u00a0 In difficult times, God will be get us through to the other side.\u00a0 Gratitude + Faith is a tenant of our faith.<\/p>\n

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Has God ever Let Us Down???…<\/span><\/h3>\n

Our God sticks around, even when we walk away (think of the “Prodigal Father” in Luke 15).<\/p>\n

In Deuteronomy chapter 8, we are told over and over again to remember God.\u00a0 To remember how He has been faithful, how He’s stuck with us…<\/p>\n

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  • \u00a0Deut 8:2 <\/span>
    \nRemember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.<\/li>\n
  • Deut 8:11-12<\/span>
    \nBe careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day.<\/li>\n
  • Deut 8:18<\/span>
    \nBut remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    God always wants us to succeed.\u00a0 He has called every believer to greatness?\u00a0 But, Do We Trust Him???\u00a0 Daniel and his friends did.\u00a0 Remember how they continued to trust God even in the face of being thrown into the fiery furnace.\u00a0 God can deliver us from anything.<\/p>\n

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    Attitude of Gratitude… or Grumbitude??<\/span><\/h3>\n

    Psalm 100:4 tells us to:<\/p>\n

    “Enter His Gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise.”<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    When we come to church- for worship, Bible Study or even Team Meetings- what’s\u00a0 our attitude?\u00a0 Do we really come “into His gates” with praise and thanksgiving.\u00a0 Are we filled with joy?\u00a0 Or, are we filled with doubt and grumbling?<\/p>\n

    God is calling us to be filled with Joy!!! To have an attitude of gratitude.\u00a0 When we think of God’s\u00a0 faithfulness and of His\u00a0 grace, we can’t help but be thankful.\u00a0 How can you grumble when you consider verses such as…<\/p>\n

    Ephesians 2:8-9<\/span>
    \nFor it is by grace you have been saved, through faith \u2014 and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God\u2014\u00a0 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.<\/span>
    \nNIV<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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    Could it be that our lack of Joy and Gratitude has led us to an attitude of entitlement?\u00a0 That it’s owed to me?\u00a0 That somehow we just expect things to be handed to us and when we don’t get what we want we take on a spirit of grumbling instead of joy?\u00a0 If something’s owed to you, you won’t be thankful for it.<\/p>\n

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    There is a story of a monk who joined a monastery under a pledge of silence.\u00a0 He was only allowed to\u00a0speak two words a year, and that was to be done during an annual meeting with the abbot.\u00a0\u00a0A the end of the new monk’s first year, he\u00a0went to the abbot.\u00a0\u00a0 After enduring a full\u00a0year of silence,\u00a0the first words out of his mouth were: “Food Bad.”\u00a0 The next year, he choose his two words\u00a0to be “Room Small.”\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The third year, he said “Bed Uncomfortable.”<\/span><\/p>\n

    On the occasion of his\u00a0fourth year, he said: “Want Out.”\u00a0 The abbot responded, “I’m not surprised.\u00a0\u00a0All you’ve done since you got here is\u00a0complain.”<\/span><\/p><\/div><\/div>\n

    Like this monk, are we thankful continuously or are we grumbling continuously?<\/p>\n

    God is fulfilling His purpose in the universe.\u00a0 He’s got it figured out and through His faithfulness He will accomplish what He wants.\u00a0 He can’t help but be faithful to us.<\/p>\n

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    “God doesn’t play dice with the universe.” <\/span><\/p>\n

    – Albert Einstein<\/span><\/p><\/div><\/div>\n

    God’s not stumped by anything we’re facing.\u00a0 He says “seek me and I’ll show you the way.\u00a0 Just be faithful unto me.\u00a0 I’ll make it happen.”<\/p>\n

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    Called to “Stink the Place Up”…<\/span><\/h3>\n

    When getting ready for the Thanksgiving dinner, the house is filled with a lot of smells.\u00a0 Good smells.\u00a0 As we keep an attitude of gratitude, we are called to make some good smells too.<\/p>\n

    Check out 2 Corinthians 2:14-15…<\/p>\n

    But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him.\u00a0 For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.<\/span>
    \nNIV<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    Do we have a fragrance that tells others that we have been in the presence of Almighty God?<\/p>\n

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    • Ezekiel 20:41\u00a0 “I will accept you as fragrant incense when I bring you out from the nations and gather you from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will show myself holy among you in the sight of the nations.”<\/li>\n
    • Ps 116:17\u00a0 “I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the Lord.”<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      When we consider God’s faithfulness, we can’t avoid developing an attitude of gratitude.<\/p>\n

      How’s your aroma?\u00a0 Do you model the Canadian Goose’s faithfulness?\u00a0 Let the goose’s faithfulness remind you of God’s faithfulness, and then offer “a sacrifice of thanks and praise.”<\/p>\n

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      Quiz Time!<\/span><\/h3>\n

      As you reflect on what you’ve just heard\/read, give this quiz a try.\u00a0 If you don’t understand an answer (or if you disagree with the “correct” answer, post a comment…<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

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