started a short series about thanksgiving:   Being thankful for things we usually do not think about being thankful for.  November 9 was was this:  Be thankful that Jesus can redeem our suffering.  November 16 learned to be thankful that Jesus redeems our mistakes.  Today we talk about being thankful that Jesus teaches us about our diet.  We are what we eat and each week we have the honor of joining Jesus at his table.  A table he asked us to come to and that is the best food you will have all week.

This morning I want us to reflect on being thankful that God works in our failures.  With God, our failures do not have to be the final word on our lives.  God can redeem our suffering and he can redeem our failures as well.

November in my mind gets to thinking about Thanksgiving.  As I get older I find Thanksgiving to be a favorite holiday.  The theme of Thanksgiving is very Biblical so it is always appropriate to focus on it.  When we usually ask what someone is thankful for we get the usual and appropriate, answers like family, health etc.  I want us to focus on some other things we may not usually think of first.  The sermon today is about being thankful that in Jesus our suffering will be redeemed.  If we suffer as a Christian we can find joy in that.  Pick your battles in life and if you choose them well then the struggle and fight will be worth it.  Promise!  Dustin will be leading our singing Sunday and he has selected these songs and an explanation as to why they were selected.

The phrase Jesus uses about passing from death to life by believing is interesting.  We still will die but we have moved from death to life?  With other things in John, there is a deeper meaning than the surface one.  Could be that we now have eternal life and that is what is meant.  Could also be that we move from a dead way of living to a way of living that is fully alive.  Eternal life starts now and because of what we have it changes everything about how we live now.  The future determines the present for Christians.  We often like to say that we are not guaranteed tomorrow and there is a sense in which this is true.  But in Christ, we are promised tomorrow, an eternity of them!

It is good to be strong and to persist in something.  I admore who people who are persistent.  However, there is also a great strength in learning when to let go of something.  If it is something you need to let go of it's really going to hurt when god finally rips it from your hand.

Fear and faith with start with an “F” but with faith we should not fear.  That slogan sounds good but fear is with us all the time.  Maybe it is not so much about ever getting rid of fear as it is realizing that if your faith is in what is stronger than your fear then you should overcome your fear.  Maybe think not so much in terms of feelings, but action.  If we make fear about how we feel, then we will always be fearful.  But of we think of courage as moving ahead in spite of our fears there we are not “fearful” but faithful.

It seems like all can agree that the world is a mess.  We are like the prodigal son who told his father to give him what he has coming and he will do things his own way.  Didn't work out well for the prodigal and it's not working out well for us either.  It's time to come to our senses and return to the father.

The question has come to me about charging interest.  Is it right or not.  Let's take a look.

The question was brought to me about why we meet on Sunday and what about churches that meet on Saturday evening.  Is that all right.  Take a listen.

Why is contentment so hard?  Ecclesiastes chaper 6 has some insight as to why.

What does it take to get heard?  It seems like to really get attention you have to be over the top these days.  That should have an effect on how we listen and judge others as they speak in this day and age when pretty much anyone can pick up a mike and potentially broadcast their ideas to millions.

Jesus asks us to daily take up our cross and follow him.  Maybe to understand this cross should not be understood as a burden, but as a mission.  The cross is not a problem but a purpose.

The last in this series of looking at the Happy Lies book.  The last installment looks at seeker sensitive churches and her criticism of those.

This may be the sinner's prayer we all need to be praying.  "God be merciful to me a sinner."  Why?  Let's explore.

As we continue to look at the book "Happy Lies" I discuss the idea that I want Jesus to save me from myself, not to affirm me.  It makes a lot of difference as to how we listen to him.

People come to Jesus for all kinds of reasons.  Some are spiritual and some are not.  Jesus welcomed all who came for whatever reason.  We should too.

Let's take a break from the review of "Happy Lies" and look at the other side.  There are those who have not had success in life and they do need to hear a message that life can be more than what they currently have.  I'll get back to reviewing the book next week, but want to pause for a side commentary.

Do you want to get well?  This is a question asked by Jesus a long time ago and we need to be asking ourselves.  Our first response might be, "Yes, of course."  But do we really.  Many do not want to get well.  Why?

If we ask and God does not do what we ask is that a lack of faith on our part?  If we just had more faith would God give us what we want?  Maybe not.  It is likely something else.  Let's explore.

In John 4 there is the story of the official whose son was near death.  Jesus spoke the word and the son lived.  However, the man had to wait the night to gete the news that his son was well.  How hard is it when Jesus makes a promise but we have to wait for it to be experienced?  Sometimes it can be a day and sometimes it can be years.  Jesus can still be believed.