22 Jun 2020 
Posted by Karla Lees 
In addition to thanking God for what He has provided for us, we can also be thankful He has provided us with strength to go through challenging times. We can offer both a sacrifice of thanksgiving for God’s obvious provisions, and also when He has enabled us to go through, and work through, a difficult life experience. We can express our thankfulness to Him and we can share God’s love by sharing this experience with others. The key is to recognize from the beginning of the circumstance that He will provide, He will strengthen and enable and He will be with us.
What are you thankful for during COVID-19 that He has provided for you and/or provided the strength for you to do? Is there something you know you could not have possibly done on your own? Rather, you know God’s hand was upon you, for which you are so thankful.
“Those who sacrifice thank offerings honor Me, and to the blameless I will show My salvation.” Psalm 50:23
The concept of a voluntary Sacrifice of Thanksgiving has given me much food for thought over this past week. I kept thinking of all the things to be thankful to God for and how I could share that thanksgiving. And, I was the recipient of a gift from a friend and colleague as she also was impacted by the concept of a sacrifice of thankfulness. What a blessing it was to have the knock on my door and see her with a meaningful gift. She wanted to share her thankfulness and I was blessed. It comes to mind that this is similar to the modern day version of “paying it forward.” God has blessed us and we in turn can bless others by asking them to share in our thanksgiving to God. They are able to see a concrete example of God’s love, provision and faithfulness which in turn can encourage them to turn to Him for all circumstances. And, they in turn, can offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving.
I love to be creative. I enjoy having an idea and running with it. I also like to learn from others and things they have thought of doing. There are an infinite number of ways you can offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving. Listen to promptings or “nudgings” from the Holy Spirit. Be attentive to all the things to be thankful for. Decide to have a strong heart of thankfulness to God and look for opportunities to share this thankfulness with others.
“Let them sacrifice thank offerings and tell of His works with songs of joy.” Psalm 107:22
Here are some ideas to get you started on your journey of offering thanks and sharing your thankfulness. One of the beauties of a sacrifice of thanksgiving is that it is personal to you and God, personal to the blessing you are thanking God for, and personal to the others you want to share it with. Allow time to thank God and be sensitive to God’s direction on how you can share with others.
20 Examples of Sacrifices of Thanksgiving
- Invite friends for dinner to express thanks for the relationship God has allowed you to have and nourish.
- Give people a small gift to express thankfulness for a gift God has given you.
- Give someone a book you are thankful you read and you think they may also enjoy it.
- Gift someone with the gift of a massage. As you are thankful you have enjoyed a massage, you can pay for someone else to have one.
- Give someone a gift of your expertise. Maybe God has given you a green thumb and you are enjoying a beautiful garden. Give a sacrifice of thanksgiving to someone else by sharing your knowledge.
- Participate in a clean-up day in thankfulness for His beautiful world. And, consider bringing snacks!
- Give to a missionary in thankfulness for someone who has shared the love of God with a loved one.
- Volunteer to mentor someone in thankfulness for what God has taught you when you were in a similar circumstance.
- Write a letter to a person you are thankful for and also share it with their family.
- Give to a Christian organization in thankfulness for a program you were blessed with.
- Write a book, start a blog or write an article about what you have learned from God about dealing with a specific circumstance.
- Buy pizza for a sports team you have enjoyed watching or for the music class at your child’s school after their concert you enjoyed.
- Give time to speak to your server and ask them how they are, as well as leave a tip, to let them know how much you enjoyed the meal and their help.
- Do pro-bono work in thankfulness for the skills God has given you.
- Help someone achieve their dream in thankfulness for what God has done for you.
- Write a good review in thankfulness for good service you have received.
- Leave money behind in a country you have visited in thankfulness for the joy your vacation gave you.
- Write a song about a thankfulness of sacrifice story you have.
- Give a Bible Study on the sacrifice of thankfulness in thankfulness for what God has done, is doing and will do!
- Every day: think about something you are thankful for and express your thanksgiving to God and how you can share your thankfulness to others. Complete this sentence: Lord, I am thankful for ______________________________ and want to share my thankfulness for your goodness by _______________________________________.
May God richly bless you as you offer the Sacrifice the Thanksgiving as part of your every day expression of love for God and others.
Have a wonderful week!
Bonny, Christian Women at Work
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