Tag Archives: Thanksgiving

No, I Won’t Bless the Food

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PrayerDo  you pray before you begin eating a meal? I don’t mean “God is great, God is good, thank You for this food, Amen.” I mean a heartfelt prayer of thanksgiving for God’s provision. I once heard of a family who prayed over their grocery sacks before unpacking them so they didn’t have to pray at each meal. I don’t think this is the right motive or means for giving thanks for the nourishment God provides through our daily bread.

In his post “No, I Won’t Bless the Food” Donald Whitney gives some great instruction on why and how we should pray before we begin each meal.

Whitney writes:

In my travels, at the start of a meal with Christian brothers and sisters, I’m often asked, “Will you bless the food?”

“No.”

My hosts sit there in stunned silence for a moment. Then, with everyone staring at me with awkward, “What do we do now?” looks, I’ll add, “But I’ll be happy to ask the Lord to bless the food.”

Maybe it reflects the limits of my own experience, but it’s been my observation that nowadays fewer followers of Jesus pause like this at the beginning of a meal to give thanks for what they are about to eat.

This seems to be true for individuals and for families, at home and in public.

Why the decline? As with all Christian practices and disciplines, unless each successive generation is taught the reason for something, it soon devolves into mere a routine, then an empty tradition, and then disuse.

Biblical origins of mealtime prayers

Have you ever been taught the biblical reasons for the Christian tradition of praying before a meal? To continue reading follow this link: No, I Won’t Bless the Food.

A Psalm of Giving Thanks (Ps 100)

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Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! 2  Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!

3 Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and  we are his;[a] we are his  people, and the sheep of his pasture.

4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!

5 For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.

From the English Standard Version of the Bible.

Worship With Thankful Hearts

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I hope everyone reading this is making plans to attend church with your fellow Christians to worship the God and Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. When we gather together it should be a time of celebrating the resurrection of Jesus.  It is through His death, burial, and resurrection that we are able to be forgiven, justified, and sanctified.  Therefore, I pray this Lord’s Day finds you with a thankful heart.

Here are a few verses from the Psalms that reveal the heart of true worshippers when they gather together mindful of all the Lord’s heavenly gifts.  Happy Lord’s Day!

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, [And] into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him,[and] bless His name. (Ps. 100:4) 

I will praise the name of God with a song, And will magnify Him with thanksgiving. (Ps. 69:30) 

Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving; Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms. (Ps. 95:2) 

Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands! … [4] Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, [And] into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, [and] bless His name. (Ps. 100:1, 4) 

Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, And declare His works with rejoicing. (Ps. 107:22) 

I will offer to You the sacrifice of thanksgiving, And will call upon the name of the LORD. (Ps. 116:17) 

Therefore I will give thanks to You, O LORD, among the Gentiles, And sing praises to Your name.(Ps. 18:49) 

Sing praise to the LORD, you saints of His, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name…To the end that [my] glory may sing praise to You and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to You forever. (Ps. 30:4, 12) 

I will give You thanks in the great assembly; I will praise You among many people.    (Ps. 35:18) 

We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks! For Your wondrous works declare [that] Your name is near. (Ps. 75:1) 

So we, Your people and sheep of Your pasture, Will give You thanks forever; We will show forth Your praise to all generations. (Ps. 79:13) 

[It is] good to give thanks to the LORD, And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High…(Ps. 92:1) 

Rejoice in the LORD, you righteous, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name. (Ps. 97:12) 

Praise the LORD! Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for [He is] good! For His mercy [endures] forever. (Ps. 106:1) 

Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for [He is] good! For His mercy [endures] forever.       (Ps. 107:1) 

Father, we worship and glorify You this morning with hearts thankful for all the ways You demonstrate Your love toward us.  Thank You, Father!

All Bible quotes are taken from the New King James Version.

Sending a Piece of Home Overseas

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Pray for our TroopsThanksgiving was wonderful again this year. I enjoyed the privilege of a Thanksgiving meal with all my family.

Sunday, November 20, I enjoyed eating a meal with my church family. It was great to get to talk with so many people. Our Fellowship Hall was buzzing with many conversations as people of all ages were sitting together sharing all about their lives. There was talk about the BSC rankings and if OU has a prayer of making the championship game and debates about whether LSU and Alabama should have a rematch or if someone else should get a shot at knocking off the number one team in the nation. It was just a time of enjoying one another’s company.

My second Thanksgiving meal last week was with my family. It was the first time to have Thanksgiving at my parent’s house since my brother died last year. It was weird to see one of my nephews in my brother’s traditional seat; however, he is so ornery that it was rather appropriate for him to take that chair. My son loved getting to spend several hours with his cousins. My dad and I enjoyed watching a couple of football games while mom, Shirley, and my sister sat and talked together. It was a good day!

As Christmas is rapidly approaching, we are making plans to get together with other family members who we haven’t seen in years. As a pastor I am normally in attendance of a Christmas Eve service so I am not able to go to these family parties. This year looks to be different and I am hopeful that I will be able to see aunts, uncles, and cousins I haven’t seen in years. The holidays are a wonderful time when you’re able to get together, talk, laugh, and remember days gone by.

There are many who are a part of our American family who won’t be home for the holidays.  Yesterday at church, one of our members was in attendance for the first time since March. He is on a two-week leave from Afghanistan and had just arrived home on Thanksgiving Day. He agreed to come down to the front of the sanctuary so the church family could pray for him and all our soldiers who are serving around the world. Before we gathered around him and his family to pray, I asked him a few questions about how we could best pray for our soldiers living and serving in harm’s way. He didn’t ask for a speedy end to the war, he didn’t ask for protection or assurance of a safe return home, nor did he ask for any special kind of treatment. His answer was more down to earth than I had expected. His reply was simple: “Over the last several months we have lost fourteen soldiers from the state of Oklahoma. What we could use more than anything is encouragement.”

Our soldiers know that we love them, are praying for them, support them, and are eagerly awaiting their return home to family and friends. In spite of these facts, they still need encouragement from home. They don’t want a pat on the back for doing their duty; they want word that we are lifting them up; they want pictures of the leaves changing colors; they want to know we are all still connect regardless of the miles between us.

There are many ways to get in contact with our soldiers who are serving all around the world. I would challenge you to write them a card, send them a picture of a multicolored tree in your neighborhood, give them an email address to write back and turn them into a twenty-first century pen pal, but most of all, tell them “Thank you” for their service and sacrifice. Let them know how much you appreciate them. Let them be a part of your extended family. Most of our military servants will be away from home this holiday, so let’s send a small part of home to them!

Give Thanks With a Grateful Heart (Part 2)

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Yesterday I shared with you how grateful I am for my LOBC church family.  Today, I want to talk about the two people who mean the world to me—my parents.

As far back as I can remember my parents have been teaching me about Jesus. Every evening we would turn off the T.V. and have a family time of Bible study and prayer.  They simply sat us down and read the Bible with my brother, sister, and I.  They made sure we understood that God’s love for us would never end and that He would meet all our needs.  After Bible study, we would say our prayers together.  My parents didn’t make us learn prayers that sounded all “churchy.”  They told us just to talk honestly to God sharing our needs, fears, concerns, but mostly to thank, praise, and worship Him.

Another lesson they taught me was responsibility.  I had chores that were my responsibility, and if I didn’t do them, they wouldn’t get done.  I was to complete my chores in the proper amount of time and with the right kind of attitude.  Trust me, it never paid to complain about my chores (I’ll let you figure out what happened when I complained).  My chores were also to be done to the best of my ability.  I was never allowed to do a job half-way.  In today’s standards all this may sound harsh, but they taught me lessons I am still applying today.  Everyday I try to do my best at my job; taking a sick day doesn’t happen unless I just can’t get out of bed.  I believe that my work is a direct reflection of my character, so I want everyone to know me by the work I do.  Besides, one of the Bible verses my parents taught me was Colossians 3:17, “Whatever you do in word or deed, do it as to the Lord Jesus.”  If I am working for Him, He knows when I am slacking off!

I also learned about commitment from watching my parents.  They have been married for forty-eight years.  They made a commitment to God to love each other no matter what, and they have stuck with it.  They have had lots of difficulties throughout the years, but they never gave up.  Through financial struggles, sickness, family loss, crippling injuries, and even getting older they have managed to stay together and still love each other in spite of the difficulties.  Their commitment even stretched to them fulfilling a promise—they never backed out of a promise.  No matter how difficult, they always kept their word.

The greatest lesson I learned from my parents is to just be myself.  Mom and Dad never tried to act like someone they weren’t.  They have always been down-to-earth and were never ashamed of who they were.  They never looked down on others because they had less, nor did they envy others who had more.  They were always happy for those who were blessed with more and were willing to help those who had less.  They taught me that it is okay to be Bob Pittenger.

So today, I want to honor my mom and dad.  I am so thankful that in God’s divine plan He allowed me to be the son of Bob and Geri Pittenger!  Mom and Dad I love you and want to thank you for everything you have taught me over the years!