We were called to love and to peace and to thankfulness in
this one body of Christ. It is about harmony in the group. Three amazing
emotions that are the gifts of God:
·
Peace – a sense of well-being no matter the
difficulties we face. The reason for that is the knowledge that we are in
Christ – hidden and raised up. How could this one truth not give us the
greatest peace at all times?
·
Love – the knowledge that God has given
everything for me and to me as His son.
·
Thankfulness – I fear that too often we consider
this an attitude when it ought to be a lifestyle. We talk about it a great
deal, but our lives reveal the truth.
Sometimes, peace, love, and thankfulness are hard to come by
even though God gives them freely. Our hearts are often troubled. Feeling loved
sometimes disappears. We know that we are loved. God loves us. Family and
friends love us. But still, it seems so far away. So what do we do? We ask God
to change our hearts, to fill us with His love, and then we demonstrate that
love to others. We ask Him to fill us with His peace, and then we live it out
in the midst of life’s difficult circumstances. And then we ask God to make us
truly thankful. Lord, give me an attitude of gratitude that becomes a lifestyle
of love for you and others.
Notice how Paul puts it: let the peace of God…. We have to
allow God’s peace to rule in our hearts. It is a choice to have peace in our
hearts – financial peace, peace about our families, peace in the church. Sweet
peace. His peace. Let it rule in my heart today. One commentary puts it this
way: “There is no room for ill will or bitterness if thankfulness prevails”
(New American Commentary, vol. 32, p. 302).
Have a blessed and Happy Thanksgiving!
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