Humble Thanks

Thanksgiving is more than a religious duty; it’s one of the greatest means to genuine happiness. Christianity is founded upon the recognition that God has done for us what we cannot do for ourselves–certainly more than we deserve. We begin this study by exploring of this fundamental act of gratitude.

God deserves our thanks, for he is the great Giver. In this session, we’ll talk about what that means, and specifically, how addressing God as Father can teach us about his goodness and generosity.

In The General Thanksgiving, we first give thanks for the gift of creation, or what poet Wendell Berry calls “the grace of the world.” We discuss what this means and how our own existence as creatures is a gift, as we learn to recognize and receive all things with gratitude.

So often we assume that we are responsible for our own sustenance and that success is due to our own efforts. In this session, we see that God is the true source of life and blessing. We owe him thanks for every good we enjoy.

The apostle Paul writes, “He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ.” Even our spiritual growth is a gift of God; we need only make ourselves available to his work. In this session, we discuss the means of God’s work, the means of grace by which he converts and transforms our lives.

We are given a great gift: a promised future in which we experience and share in the glory of God. Yet, as C.S. Lewis observes, we remain half-hearted creatures, fooling about when infinite joy is offered us. In this session, we examine why God’s promises far exceed all the smaller hopes that often occupy our thoughts.

Give us such an awareness of you mercies, we pray, yet often we live unaware of and ungrateful for the gifts of God. In this lesson, we consider the common reasons for our inattention and ingratitude and ask how we can become more attentive and aware.

How should we respond to the overwhelming goodness and generosity of God? Simple: show forth God’s praise. In this session, we discuss what that means, focusing especially on why praise is a duty of the people of God and why it is also public.

Jesus came not to be served but to serve, and likewise he tells his followers that they are servants of God and called to serve one another. In this session, we discuss how service follows from thanksgiving and is central to the Christian life.

“Be holy as I am holy.” God’s words to his people exemplify what J.I. Packer once called “the goal of our redemption,” which is that we should live as a holy people. But what does holiness mean? This question guide our concluding session on The General Thanksgiving.