A daily, Bible-based message of hope and encouragement.
 The online Bible teaching ministry of Stephen & Brooksyne Weber. <Previous Message · Archives · Archive edition Thursday, November 24, 2011 Thanksgiving Day  Our local community paper places a Thanksgiving proclamation on their front page.  Listen to this message on your audio player."Magnify Him With Thanksgiving" "I will praise the Name of God with song and magnify Him with thanksgiving" (Psalm 69:30).  Today is Thanksgiving Day here in the USA. Some friends are joining us for this designated day of thankfulness and a wonderful extra large meal. Brooksyne has been preparing since last night and we are cleaning the house extra well! It's a special day; with origins going back as early as 1621 at the time of the Pilgrims. In the course of our chaplain work we see a lot of folks that immigrated to America as adults primarily from Southeast Asia, Latin America and Eastern Europe. I am blessed by the strong work ethic and drive to succeed commonly seen in many of them. During my recent visit I asked these folks about the Thanksgiving customs they practice from their original homeland. Each one indicated that having a specific day dedicated to Thankfulness was introduced to them after arriving in America. In fact only two countries actually celebrate Thanksgiving; the United States and Canada. I asked further, "Do you celebrate Thanksgiving as a special day now that you're living in the USA?" Not really surprisingly they do, including the custom for many of roasting a turkey! In fact, yesterday we learned from our Bosnian friends that turkey will be at the center of their feast today. I especially consider Milan, a Bosnian friend, who left his home country in the late nineties when he was 49. He and his wife and two daughters came to America not knowing English and wearing only the clothes they had on (their baggage was lost in transit!!!) Several weeks ago we had dinner with Milan, Zakira and their daughters in their beautiful new home. They have worked hard and done very well. What a blessing to offer thanks prior to our meal. They recounted the extreme difficulty of living through the war that wracked their country in the mid-nineties. They saw people, some of them friends, die in bombings. They had their home bombed out and all the windows shattered. Milan is just a few years older than I, yet he has experienced desperate living conditions where stability and comfort were foreign to their circumstances. "It is a special time for my family to participate in the custom of Thanksgiving here in America" he told me in a very solemn tone. We all have so much to be thankful for, although our "blessings" vary from one person to the next. Yet even as the world has denigrated the true meaning of Christmas, it seems the same is happening to Thanksgiving. This began with a subtle change of the object of our thanksgiving being attributed to others rather than God. Today I'm so thankful for my salvation, my family and friends, and my church. I have also been mightily blessed with much of the good things this world has to offer relative to so many. (Most all of you reading this have as well!) Many songs have been written that express thanks to God. Today's verse is taken from a Psalm of David and expresses an interesting way to "magnify" the Lord. The Hebrew word for magnify is "gadal" and is translated throughout the Old Testament with words like advance, lift up, promote, increase, and boast. I remember in my earliest days as a Christian singing a gospel chorus with the line "O, magnify the Lord with me." It was my first pastor, James O. Howard's, favorite chorus as I recall. It's so old now I can't even find it on YouTube but it went like this. Maybe this will stir up some old memories! Magnify the Lord with me! Blessed Lamb of Calvary! For His Grace so rich and free, Magnify the Lord with me! Magnify the Lord with me! Blessed Lamb of Calvary! Jesus gave us liberty, So Magnify the Lord with me! I like the word "magnify" and here we are told "we magnify Him with thanksgiving." Let us indeed magnify the Lord by our thankfulness and remember; God's call to a life of thankfulness is not limited to this day, it's not seasonal, but should be a daily expression! Be encouraged today, Stephen & Brooksyne Weber  Daily Prayer: Today we want to share a prayer we earnestly pray for our family, friends and readers. It is from Colossians 1:3-14 with slight adaptation.
Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources Today we complete our selection of music we've been sharing with a theme of Thankfulness. "Be Magnified" Video Kim Hill "In Everything Give Thanks" Video Charlotte Ritchie, Jeff & Sheri Easter "Thanks" Video Marshall Hall and the Homecoming Singers "I Want To Thank You" Video Karen Peck and New River This is a song expressing thankfulness to the many people who impact our lives and also reminds us of the blessing of seemingly insignificant expressions of faith. From the Gaither Homecoming series. "Thank You Lord For Your Blessings On Me" Video Gordon Mote & Jason Crabb "Thanksgiving Medley" Video Nice selection of grand old thanksgiving hymns. "Now Thank We All Our God" Video Traditional version Here's a bit more contemporary version with same lyrics. "Come We Thankful People Come" Video Traditional version Here's a bit more contemporary version with same lyrics. "I'm Forever Grateful" Video Willow Creek "Give Thanks With A Grateful Heart" Video Don Moen "When I Thank Him For What He Has Done" Video The Cathedrals A highly recommended read:  Nearing Home: Life, Faith, and Finishing WellBy Billy Graham / Thomas Nelson Special Thanksgiving Resources We want to offer these resources to families and church leaders to enrich the spiritual impact of the Thanksgiving holiday. We will post these resources through Thanksgiving Day here in the US (November 24).  "Thankful For The Thorns": A family reading and exercise that is a wonderful way to give a thoughtful focus around your Thanksgiving Table. The Thanksgiving celebration typically includes family coming together for a huge meal and hopefully a heartfelt prayer of thankfulness. However it can often be difficult to have a spiritually oriented conversation. Why not add some stimulating discussion about the ways God has worked in your life over the past year! Some of you are not in charge and are only visitors at your Thanksgiving gathering, but if it is possible share together around the table the theme of "Thankful for the Thorns" (printable webpage)."A Thanksgiving family exercise" (pdf). We have used this questionnaire as a stimulus for discussion among family members in the past in our home. We encourage you to share results around the table at Thanksgiving before or after the meal. A Thanksgiving prayer: Written by Joe Sherer, a pastor friend of ours and shared as the benediction at our community Thanksgiving Eve service several years ago. (printable webpage) For those who enjoy written prayers this would be a beautiful prayer to read together at the Thanksgiving table. A Thanksgiving Scripture reading: A selection of Old and New Testament readings dealing with thankfulness appropriate for church, family and personal readings. (pdf) (Suitable for printing out and copying.) Send a message to Stephen & Brooksyne. | |
 Our photo taken at the Bridge of Flowers in Sherburne Falls, MA Fall 2011 "We want to encourage you daily in your walk with Christ!" Personal Ministry Update (Revised 10/21/11)  Each weekday morning Brooksyne and I prepare these messages and distribute them at no cost to you and many others all over the world. Would you please consider a financial offering to support us in this teaching ministry? Donations are tax deductible and will be receipted directly by my chaplaincy endorsing ministry. Thanks!See here for details. 2011 financial offerings to Daily Encouragement Net as of 11/23/11: $12,916.00 SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION  Were you forwarded this edition of Daily Encouragement Net? If you desire you can receive your own free! To receive these "Daily Encouragement" devotionals each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe. This newsletter is never sent by us unsolicited. It was sent to you because you either signed up to receive it OR a friend forwarded it to you. You can also subscribe to the rss feed or as an email subscription through feedburner.Cancel: We respect and value your time and privacy. If you no longer desire to receive these messages you can remove your address from the list by merely using the link automatically inserted by the mailing list software at the very bottom of each email message. (To change addresses cancel your old address and then join again using your new address.) Weekly Version: The weekly version is intended for those who may not check their email regularly or who may desire less frequent mailings. It is Friday's message with a link to previous messages. To receive the free weekly version, send a blank email to this address. Daily Encouragement on Facebook and Twitter:  The daily message and prayer on Facebook. The daily message and prayer on Twitter.Reader Survey: Please take a few minutes to assist us in improving our ministry effectiveness by filling out this online reader survey. To take the survey click here. Please feel free to pass these messages on! Our other blogs: "A Daily Prayer" - A blog simply posting the daily prayer. We keep this up each day since it's merely the prayer from the Daily Encouragement Net message! "A Little Foolishness" - Humor/satire blog (a great outlet for non-serious writing but at times with a subtle message!) (Note: This material is satire!) "Clear Minded" - Longer, periodic articles on specific issues impacting the faithful believer and church. (Actually this is my intent but I haven't done much with it!) "Hymns of Hope" - Brooksyne along with two friends made a CD using classic hymns. Brooksyne tells the background story of the 11 hymns. All of these songs are also available for download on the site.  Daily Encouragement Net is an affiliate of Christianbook.com. Any orders placed to Christian Book Distributers using this link or any specific product link to a recommended resource in a daily encouragement message will help our Daily Encouragement ministry through a small commission on the sale. Thank you for using these links when purchasing online through CBD!Personal Mission Statement "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."  How to become a child of God Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version. © Copyright 2011 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved Daily Encouragement Net Stephen & Brooksyne Weber 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 Contact us  Endorsed chaplain "Living securely today anchored in God's solid foundation" www.dailyencouragement.net |
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