A third gift God bestows when we give thanks, is the privilege of being a powerful witness to those around us. Our unnatural, supernatural response to trouble puts us up on the stage of grace where we can do the dance of faith in front of all those around us.
As we trust God we bring a focus on God’s good character in a way that words alone could never do.
Thus God gives us opportunity to join Him in the spread of the gospel by walking in faith, in opening people’s eyes to spiritual truth, and in drawing them to Himself.
I think that we underestimate the impact we have on others when we respond positively to difficulty, offering the sacrifice of thanksgiving. In the recent death of my brother, I let go of him before he died and thanked God for what He was doing in Sam’s life by taking him home. As people offered their condolences, I shared with them my view of Sam’s death. Some were glad, some were amazed, some were disturbed. But God was glorified before many.
Truly, as we offer the sacrifice of praise, we honor God. His glory is reflected in our lives as we honor Him in His throne room, before a multitude of angels, before demons and before all the people around us.
Since honoring God is the purpose of our lives, every difficult, disappointment and potential discouragement is an opportunity to fulfill the purpose God has given us. In doing so we are joining Him in His great plans.
Are we joining Him by offering the sacrifice of thanksgiving?
