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Posted on 01/02/2023 6:16:23 PM PST by JustAmy
Edited on 01/02/2023 7:28:26 PM PST by Jim Robinson. [history]
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Hi there! Have a Happy Thanksgiving! The cooking starts here at 7am with lunch at 12:30. No big deal, only 6 of us will be here. Much different than the 12-20 my mom used to host on this holiday. Now I make the turkey with an assist from Mom for the last hour of roasting.
So have a great day tomorrow, and see ya on Friday!
š
Enjoy a very yummy and happy Thanksgiving.
Bible in a Year:
When you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed.
In 2016, Wanda Dench sent a text inviting her grandson to Thanksgiving dinner, not knowing heād recently changed his phone number. The text instead went to a stranger, Jamal. Jamal didnāt have plans, and so, after clarifying who he was, asked if he could still come to dinner. Wanda said, āOf course you can.ā Jamal joined the family dinner in what has since become a yearly tradition for him. A mistaken invitation became an annual blessing.
Wandaās kindness in inviting a stranger to dinner reminds me of Jesusā encouragement in Lukeās gospel. During a dinner party at a āprominentā Phariseeās house (Luke 14:1), Jesus noticed who was invited and how the guests jostled for the best seats (v. 7). Jesus told His host that inviting people based on what they could do for him in return (v. 12) meant the blessing would be limited. Instead, Jesus told the host that extending hospitality to people without the resources to repay him would bring even greater blessing (v. 14).
For Wanda, inviting Jamal to join her family for Thanksgiving dinner resulted in the unexpected blessing of a lasting friendship that was a great encouragement to her after her husbandās death. When we reach out to others, not because of what we might receive, but because of Godās love flowing through us, we receive far greater blessing and encouragement. .
Reflect & Pray
When has an unexpected invitation encouraged you? What blessings did you experience?
Heavenly Father, may my invitations reflect a heart that wants to bless others as You lead me.
For further study, read Giving It Away.
Haha...and they wouldn’t mind doing that either......if they could herd the turkeys first.
She does...we have lots of wild turkeys around here.
Bible in a Year:
I love you, Lord, my strength.
Many consider Ferrante and Teicher to be the greatest piano duet team of all time. Their collaborative presentations were so precise that their style was described as four hands but only one mind. Hearing their music, one can begin to grasp the amount of effort required to perfect their craft.
But thereās more. They loved what they did. In fact, even after they had retired in 1989, Ferrante and Teicher would occasionally show up at a local piano store just to play an impromptu concert. They simply loved making music.
David also loved making musicābut he teamed up with God to give his song a higher purpose. His psalms affirm his struggle-filled life and his desire to live in deep dependence upon God. Yet, in the midst of his personal failures and imperfections, his praise expressed a kind of spiritual āperfect pitch,ā acknowledging the greatness and goodness of God even in the darkest of times. The heart behind Davidās praise is simply stated in Psalm 18:1, which reads, āI love you,Ā Lord, my strength.ā
David continued, āI called to theĀ Lord, who is worthy of praiseā (v. 3) and turned to Him āin my distressā (v. 6). Regardless of our situation, may we likewise lift our hearts to praise and worship our God. Heās worthy of all praise! .
Reflect & Pray
In what ways do you share your love for God with Him and with others? What might be standing in the way of your worship?
Heavenly Father, Youāve put a new song in my mouth. Please help my worship to express Your true goodness and greatness.
For further study, read Understanding the Bible: The Poetic Books.
Bible in a Year:
Faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.
During my morning walk, the sun hit the waters of Lake Michigan at a perfect angle to produce a stunning view. I asked my friend to stop and wait for me as I positioned my camera to take a pic. Because of the position of the sun, I couldnāt see the image on my phoneās screen before I snapped the shot. But having done this before, I sensed it would be a great picture. I told my friend, āWe canāt see it now, but pictures like this always come out good.ā
Walking by faith through this life is often like taking that picture. You canāt always see the details on the screen, but that doesnāt mean the stunning picture isnāt there. You donāt always see God working, but you can trust that Heās there. As the writer of Hebrews penned, āFaith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not seeā (11:1). By faith we place our confidence and assurance in Godāespecially when we canāt see or understand what Heās doing.
With faith, not seeing doesnāt prevent us from ātaking the shot.ā It just might make us pray more and seek Godās direction. We can also rely on knowing whatās happened in the past as others have walked by faith (vv. 4ā12) as well as through our own stories. What God has done before, He can do again. .
Reflect & Pray
What are you trusting God to do even though you may not see it clearly right now? How has He delivered you or your family in the past?
Heavenly Father, thank You for all the ways Youāve provided for me in the past. Help me to walk by faith even if I canāt see all Youāre doing.
Bible in a Year:
But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this?
As a member of the leadership team for a local ministry, part of my job was to invite others to join us as group discussion leaders. My invitations described the time commitment required and outlined the ways leaders would need to engage with their small group participants, both in meetings and during regular phone calls. I was often reluctant to impose on other people, being aware of the sacrifice theyād be making to become a leader. And yet sometimes their reply would completely overwhelm me: āIād be honored.ā Instead of citing legitimate reasons to decline, they described their gratitude to God for all Heād done in their lives as their reason for being eager to give back.
When the time came to give resources toward building a temple for God, David had a similar response: āWho am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this?ā (1 Chronicles 29:14). Davidās generosity was driven by gratitude for Godās involvement in his life and that of the people of Israel. His response speaks of his humility and his acknowledgment of His goodness toward āforeigners and strangersā (v. 15).
Our giving to Godās workāwhether in time, talent, or treasureāreflects our gratitude to the One who gave to us to begin with. All that we have comes from His hand (v. 14); in response, we can give gratefully to Him. .
Reflect & Pray
How has God been involved in your life? How can you give in response?
Dear Father, please help me to respond to Your love and care with a generous heart.
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Bible in a Year:
They are to . . . [fulfill] the obligations of the Israelites by doing the work of the tabernacle.
The Levites assigned to take care of the tabernacle furnishings had a similar aim. Unlike the priests, the Gershonites, Kohathites, and Merarites were assigned seemingly mundane tasks: cleaning the furniture, lampstands, curtains, posts, tent pegs, and ropes (Numbers 3:25ā26, 28, 31, 36ā37). Yet their jobs were specifically assigned by God, constituted ādoing the work of the tabernacleā (v. 8), and are recorded in the Bible for posterity.
What an encouraging thought! Today, what many of us do at work, at home, or in church may seem insignificant to a world that values titles and salaries. But God sees it differently. If we work and serve for His sakeāseeking excellence and doing so for His honor, even in the smallest taskāthen our work is important because weāre serving our great God. .
Reflect & Pray
How might knowing that youāre ultimately serving God change the way you work? How can you do it with pride and excellence for His sake?
Father, thank You for giving me this opportunity to serve You. Help me to be faithful with the talents and strength Youāve given me to work for You.
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Ruh-roh.........
ALL of them? Bad Tippy!....not sharing with mom!
She tipped the plate onto the floor and licked the rug clean. Not a shred left. Along with the Med-Rare Steak Tips were Bacon Mac’n’Cheese. ALL....gone.
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