Sometimes it takes the tough times to remember the important things.”
              –Stephen Bly  (Shadow of Legends)

    “For the Lord will comfort Zion, He will comfort all her waste places; He will make her wilderness like Eden, And her desert like the garden of the Lord; Joy and gladness will be found in it, Thanksgiving and the voice of melody.”
              –Isaiah 51:3 (NKJV)
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I am concerned that people are not going to focus properly on the coming week.  Thanksgiving is next Thursday; a day that was set aside specifically for Americans to enjoy family and be thankful for their blessings.  It is a time to contemplate all the bounty that we have and be thankful for it.  We are to remember God and how He cares for us.
    Perhaps it is a time that we need to put aside our worries and fears (they’re not good to carry with you anyway) and bring our eyes back to a proper perspective, a view of the Almighty and His great love for us.  There have been warnings issued against having too many people at your Thanksgiving dinner.  That is a slap in the face of the history of this nation.  Do not let fear ruin the wonderful blessings that Thanksgiving brings.
    Three Scriptures come immediately to my mind as Thanksgiving approaches, two of which are found in Philippians.

         “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you.” (1:3, NKJV)

         “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.”  (4:6, NKJV)

Often that first verse comes to me.  I think of friends and family, those of the past and those who are current.  I am thankful for them in how they touched my life and how they blest me just by being there and becoming part of my life.  Sometimes they bring a smile to my face whether in memory or in some present deed that they have done.
    The next verse should speak to all of us.  Do not be anxious for there will be enough toilet paper to go around.  I’ve heard that there is already a shortage and hoarding in the East.  Crazy for sure, but don’t get anxious over it.  Begin to be thankful.  Far too often we pray without thanksgiving, yet that is to be an integral part of our prayers.  God has not changed, if nothing else, be thankful for His unchanging love, His unchanging grace and mercy.

         “O God! our help in ages past,
            Our hope for years to come,
          Our shelter from the stormy blast,
            And our eternal home!”
                  –Isaac Watts

    That brings me to the third verse:

         “It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.  They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.”
                  –Lamentation 3:22-23 (KJV)

Though we may fail to be faithful, He is always faithful.  That is then a great reason for us to be thankful–thankful for His faithfulness to us.  God is indeed our help, in ages past, in our present situation, and in the future.  He cares for His own for great is His faithfulness.

Anger and hate are strong forces, but they can also cause failures in judgment.”
              –Lou Bradshaw  (Rubio II:  The Man)

    “Thus they have rewarded me evil for good, And hatred for my love.”  
              –Psalm 109:5 (NKJV)
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Is it a sinister ploy, or is it because the world is insane?  “Christmas is probably not gonna be possible” this year.  Some crazy journalist made this statement.  Add that to Cuomo saying that no more than ten can gather for Thanksgiving and the governor of Oregon saying no more than seven and that she’ll send police officers to homes to make sure.  Friends, is there something wrong with this junk?
    I was filling my jeep up with gas last week and talking with a fellow doing the same.  He said he was going to bury a good friend that afternoon; the dead man was 54.  The person pumping gas next to me then continued, “I am not going to allow nonsense to keep me from seeing my family and living my life.  I’m not promised tomorrow, so I’m not going to let a virus hinder me from the important things in life.”  I told him that would preach, and that he was correct.
    As a historian I have studied the horrendous and atrocious acts in times past.  There have been some gruesome times; the horror of man upon man is clearly shown in the history of mankind.  However, it is clear to see that this generation is the most violent in history.  Hatred abounds!  Men hate men, and they may deny it but the reason is that they have turned their backs on God.  A person that I know recently wrote, “I am pro-gun, pro-gay, pro-choice, and a Christian.”  Then she proceeded to say, “Don’t judge me.”  I was grieved, and all I could do was shake my head.  Talk about a delusion.  Of course, in the last days, there will be a great delusion sent upon the earth.  Men will wax worse and worse, there will be a sharper dividing line between Bible-believing Christians and pseudo-Christians who have joined with the world.
    We have the worst form of savagery in abortion.  The innocents are slaughtered, torn apart and ripped to shreds, and yet people, people who say they are Christians, vote in favor of it.  We have a lifestyle that God calls an abomination, and yet people, people who say they are Christians, vote in favor of it.  Perhaps it is that they only read the verses they want and not the whole Bible.  Perhaps they read the Word of God with a postmodern mindset which makes the Word relative to their opinion.
    Folks, perilous times are coming, I would say in some places they are already upon us.  Why the hatred, why the bitterness, why the disregard to the Word of God?  Look at the rioters, those who claim they are pushing a righteous agenda but in reality they are anarchists.  Are they not grateful that they live in this great nation?  Seemingly not for they are full of poison that is now beginning to ooze out.  Rick Renner wrote, “When people stop expressing a heart of gratitude toward God, unholy attitudes begin to materialize, then followed by unholy behavior.”  
    The holiday (holy day) season is upon us and now there are those telling us that it should not/cannot be celebrated.  Are we seeing the behavior of the heart?  Do we wonder why there is so much turmoil, grief, and terror?  It is because a nation, once so blessed by God, and I would add, still is, has turned away from being thankful to Him.  Lack of thanksgiving begets unholy behavior.  For one, I will enjoy and continue to have Thanksgiving and Christmas.  I will for me, be grateful for family, friends, memories, life, and most of all, my Savior Jesus Christ.

If it weren’t for the ugly an’ the evil, we wouldn’t know the beautiful an’ good.”
              –Zane Grey  (The Mysterious Rider)

    “Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and depart from evil.”
              –Proverbs 3:7 (NKJV)
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I was in the ol’ steel mount the other day.  Some of my best pondering and philosophyzing is done while traveling; the problem is that when I stop I can’t remember most of what was floating through my mind to write it down.  However, on this particular day, I was pondering and the title of an old song came to me:  “I Walked Today Where Jesus Walked” by Geoffrey O’Hara.  It’s not a song that is normally sung in church except as a special, but I began to ponder.
    Even as a historian I have not had a real hankering to go to the Middle East.  I know it is almost a requirement by some; sort of a Christian hajj.  I figure that during the Millennium I will be able to enjoy the region more fully.  It might be nice to see the places where Jesus lived and traveled.  I’m the kind of person who likes to see these things and then think about those times.  I have done that for years when traveling through our great country, but it is not a requirement to go to the roads where Jesus trod.
    As I continued on my journey from Coldspring to Cleveland, the title wouldn’t leave my mind.  The rest of the song didn’t seem significant, but the title stayed with me.  I began to think of the steps of the Lord and if I truly believe the Holy Writ then it seems I should be traveling where Jesus walked.  If I am in His will, then He guides my steps, and walks right beside me.
    The “Paracletos”, some versions have the “Comforter,” others the “Advocate,” “Counselor,” or “Helper.”  Neither quite sums it up for the Holy Spirit is Someone who walks beside.  He is for sure our advocate in the courtroom, our counselor for all of life’s needs, our helper when we need more strength to get through the day.  At times He wraps His arms around us, or gives us a “high-five”; but often He may have to give us a kick in the seat of the pants, and may even drive us into the wilderness.  In other words, He gives us what we need!
    So, as I travel through life’s journey, I should be walking where Jesus walked.  If I am truly the “temple of the Holy Spirit,” then where I go, He goes.

During every moment, walking or sleeping, we are vulnerable…I could die tonight…tomorrow.”
              –Louis L’Amour  (Mojave Crossing)

    “If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.”
              –Romans 14:8 (HCSB)
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Maybe these words from John I. Durham is a good place to start:  “It is still easier to offer a bull, sacrifice a goat, make a special gift, or do a job than to grapple with the hard realities of honest faith.”  It is also a good section to start in thinking about Thanksgiving.
    “This section of Psalm 50 is targeted toward wicked people who pretend to be righteous…  God’s message is:  ‘Stop the act!  Repent!  Get back on track, and I will show you salvation!'” (William Petersen)  It is an encouragement to trust and giving proper sacrifice doing the will of God.

    15 – Call on Me in a day of trouble; I will rescue you, and you will honor Me.”
    16 – But God says to the wicked: “What right do you have to recite My statutes and to take My covenant on your lips?
    17 – You hate instruction and turn your back on My words.
    18 – When you see a thief, you make friends with him, and you associate with adulterers.
    19 – You unleash your mouth for evil and harness your tongue for deceit.
    20 – You sit, maligning your brother, slandering your mother’s son.
    21 – You have done these things, and I kept silent; you thought I was just like you.  But I will rebuke you and lay out the case before you.
    22 – “Understand this, you who forget God, or I will tear you apart, and there will be no one to rescue you.
    23 – Whoever sacrifices a thank offering honors Me, and whoever orders his conduct, I will show him the salvation of God.”  (HCSB)

    The nonbeliever should tremble with these words, but most likely they will ridicule or ignore the warnings of God.  Does this not seem like today?  People using God’s Word where it suits them, especially in the fulfilling of their agenda with is really godless.  They recite God’s words then turn their backs on it.  They really do not want to hear what God has to say for it interferes with their lifestyle.  I like verse 17 from the NLT:

         “For you refuse my discipline and treat my laws like trash.”

    Could this be addressed to the culture of today as well as in David’s time?  Of course!  God’s Word does not change, nor does it alter with time.  When we honor God, He honors us.  However, there is a day coming.  Man has sinned, and God has kept silent.  Some take that to mean that God winks at sin; others say it shows that there is no God.  No, God is silently waiting; He is longsuffering wanting none to perish but there is a time coming.

         “Repent, all of you who ignore me, or I will tear you apart, and no one will help you.”  (50:22, NLT)

Very similar to Proverbs 1, where God says, “Mock me, why when you cry out when calamity comes, I’ll mock you; I’ll laugh” (my paraphrase to Proverbs 1:22-33)  “Part of the value of God’s silence is that it allows us to be ourselves and thereby reveal ourselves.” (George O. Wood)  Are we listening to God?  Do we repent when convicted?  Which type of person are you–they type that trusts God and lives for Him, or the type that ignores Him, and misuses His Word?
    The true believer is safe.  The true believer is thankful that God is in control of his life and this world.  The true believer can give thanks in the midst of calamity, in the midst of a “pandemic,” in the midst of stress, trials, and terror for God is his salvation.  So keep on the path; meaning know the Word and follow it fully.  God is there for you.

         “With broken heart and contrite sigh,
          A trembling sinner, Lord, I cry;
          Thy pardoning grace is rich and free:
          O God, be merciful to me!”
                 –Cornelius Elven