The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
A Life of Being Thankful Pastor Lorne Moorhead Northern Fellowship Chapel There was a certain man who immigrated to a Canadian city. He began business by operating a small corner grocery store. Eventually he married and had three children. One who who had become an accountant came home for a visit. He observed the store's operation and was concerned about what he saw, and expressed his concern by criticizing the way his father did business. "Dad," he said, "I don't understand how you run this store. You keep your accounts payable in a cigar box, your accounts receivable on a spindle, all your cash in the cash register. You never know what your profits are!" "Son," his dad replied, "let me tell you something. When I arrived in this country, all I owned was the pants I was wearing. Now your sister is a teacher, your brother a doctor and you an accountant. Your mother and I own a house, a car and this store. Add all that up and subtract the pants, there is your profit!" Here was a man who understood the Biblical admonition to "be content with such things as you have." (Hebrews 13:5) Having received from God's providence enough to provide for his livelihood and for his family, he was content and lived a life of thanksgiving for God's goodness. Don't we express discontent a lot? We complain about the weather, about some inconvenience, about a slight from someone, real or imaginary, about taxes, about too much work or too little work and on and on it goes. But we have so many reasons to be thankful to God. This is the season of thanksgiving. In Canada, Thanksgiving Day is on Monday, October 11. It would do many of us a lot of good to take some time just to think over the things for which we can be truly thankful. A Christian view of thankfulness could be as follows: God has done something wonderful and exceptional. He so loves the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him has everlasting life. Jesus willingly laid down His life so we will not have to perish in hell. If Jesus really did that when He died on the cross of Calvary, then I should forever be thankful to Him. On Remembrance Day we remember with thanksgiving the soldiers who died for this country. How much more we should be thankful to God for Jesus our Lord. That must lead to a life of being thankful!8/10/04
