Thanksgiving: Good Gifts

What is your favorite gift that you have ever received? I want to tell you about mine!

Thanksgiving: Good Gifts

This week's devotions are written by my son, Bryant Forshee, Lead Student Pastor for Cross Church, Springdale, AR campus.

- Pastor Danny

"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, who does not change like shifting shadows."

(James 1:17, CSB)

What is your favorite gift that you have ever received?

I want to tell you about mine! Now, before I share, the greatest gifts that I have received are in this order: salvation, Kyndall (my wife), and my sons. No doubt, that is the order, but for this conversation, I want to talk about non-people gifts, especially sentimental items. My favorite gift was a black-and-red LEGO castle set that Leighton and I got for Christmas! I remember getting this big LEGO set, and I remember Leighton and me working on it for a couple of days. We were determined to finish it, so we did, and then we played with it for a while.

If you were to ask me why that was my favorite gift, I don't know if I would have a great reason. It wasn't my favorite theme, and it wasn't the coolest LEGO set I have ever been given; it was just a great LEGO set that I put a lot of work into and remember fondly to this day!

Why do I tell you about this black-and-red LEGO castle? Because God was the giver of that good gift! That may seem like a pretty big jump: LEGO to God—but read our verse of the day! If we take James 1:17 to be true, I believe God was the giver of the LEGO black-and-red castle. Now, did God use my parents and Christmas that year as the conduits to give me the gift? I absolutely believe that! But I think if we were to pause and take a moment to think about every good thing, we could trace it back to God.

Think about what you're doing even right now! You're reading a devotion on a computer or your phone. You are getting (hopefully) spiritual encouragement from a glowing screen that most of us don't even know how it operates or runs, but we are thankful it is showing us these words! Think about a breath: we don't tell our lungs what to do; they just do it, and we reap the benefits—which is a very good thing, might I add.

So here is what I want us to do today: Look for the gifts and thank the gift-Giver!

When you get in your car, thank Him for the car.
When you reach your destination, thank Him for the safe journey.
When you get food, or coffee, or an energy drink, thank Him for the gift.
When you have a good laugh, thank Him for the funny friend or moment that made you laugh.
When you see something beautiful in nature, thank Him for His creativity.

Whenever you come in contact with a "good" thing today, thank the Giver of all good gifts: God!