Thanksgiving: People

What about the people in your life? Who are you thankful for?

Thanksgiving: People

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

- Pastor Danny

"I give thanks to my God for every remembrance of you."

(Philippians 1:3, CSB)

I hope you are enjoying a few days of extra thankfulness and that it has even translated into you audibly saying "thank you" to people and to God throughout your day! Today, I want to talk about being thankful for people! Yesterday, we looked at God as the giver of all good gifts, and I think one of the greatest gifts God gives us here on earth is the people we do life with! Before we get practical, let's get biblical!

Today's verse comes from the book of Philippians, and if you didn't know, it was written by Paul. Paul, early in the book, thanks God for the people He is writing to! This isn't the first time he has done this in his writings. Check out these other examples:

"We always thank God for all of you, making mention of you constantly in our prayers." (1 Thessalonians 1:2, CSB)

"I always thank my God when I mention you in my prayers." (Philemon 1:4, CSB)

"I always thank my God for you because of the grace of God given to you in Christ Jesus." (1 Corinthians 1:4, CSB)

In these four verses, we see a similar theme from Paul: Thankfulness to God for people! Now, this could be an introductory statement that Paul put in his letters, but I choose to believe that it is more than that! I believe Paul loves these people and is genuinely thankful to God for them!

What about the people in your life? Who are you thankful for? Who could you make a Philippians 1:3 statement about, "I give thanks to my God for every remembrance of [insert name]."

If I could get personal for a second, I want to tell you about two people for whom I thank God every time I think of them: Kyndall Forshee and Ben Watts!

Kyndall is an obvious one but an absolute necessary one! She is my wife, my best friend, my better half, "my person," and so many other things. She loves me, serves me, and is with me every step of the way! I thank God every day for Kyndall!

Ben is my best friend! He and I began serving at a previous church together, and he is a man of faith, determination, skill, and love for amazing teams: the Pittsburgh Steelers and UNC Basketball. Ben is a man of integrity, faithfulness, and humility. He is there for me, calls me out, and makes me a better Christ-follower, husband, and pastor!

For whom in your life do you thank God?

Here's my challenge for you today: Think of a couple people for whom you are thankful to God! After you have those people, thank God for them, and then send a text message to that person, or give them a call! Give them specific reasons that you thank God for them!

Don't expect anything in return; just thank God for them. He's the one who has given them to you!