There are two types of people in this world.

Those who exchange eternal life for the passing pleasures of sin.

And those who exchange the passing pleasures of sin for eternal life.

Everyone is making an exchange. Today, you are making an exchange. Choose well.

The Bible says, "God has put eternity in the heart of every man." (Ecclesiastes 3:11)

Consider how long eternity is, how eternally deadly sin is, and how eternally satisfying true holiness is. Don't make a bad exchange. There are no second chances, and life is too short to choose wrong.

Yesterday there was another violent incident at a university. A Muslim attacked multiple people with his car and a knife. Since the tragedy, America has risen up to offer sympathy and prayers. Social media is flooded with messages about prayer. News personalities, celebrities, and politicians are offering thoughts and prayers. Even Ivanka Trump, daughter of the President-elect, Donald Trump offered this statement... "Sending love and prayers to the Ohio State University campus and community following today's tragic events."

Prayer is important. Most people pray. Muslims pray to Allah. They face Mecca to pray to Allah. They do it five times a day. Hindus pray toward the idea of an ultimate peace (Brahman), communicating through many gods to access what they want. Followers of other religions may pray to their ancestors, or the sun, or the Earth. 

Christians pray to God. We pray primarily to the Father in the name or authority of Jesus Christ, by the leading of the Holy Spirit. During prayer we acknowledge who God is, and our dependency upon Him. We confess our sins or faults to Him. We thank Him for the blessings He bestows upon us. We seek His guidance and provision in our lives. We pray to a God we know... personally. And we expect Him to hear us and work in our behalf. 

For most of American history we have generally been Christian in our approach to God. This included our prayer habits. You can see this not only in the prayers of pastors, but in the prayers of politicians and most every prayer you read from early Americans. But something interesting has happened in our Western culture over the last couple of generations. As we have pushed God out of our mainstream, including our educational system, our government, and our marketplace, we continue to pray... but we have had to shift our prayer away from God. It doesn't make sense to pray to someone whose existence you deny, or whose input you don't want, right?

So we still feel like we need to pray, but we have kicked God to the curb. That's awkward. What does that look like? Well, now instead of sending prayers to God, we send prayers to people. Prayer has morphed from being a petition we send to God, to being a package of thoughts and feelings we send to people. We have taken on an approach to prayer that is similar to the religions of the Far East. Prayer is now not a conversation we have with a personal God. Rather it is an exchange of feelings we have within the community. This makes sense. As we ejected God from our lives, we didn't replace Him with dolphins or the sun, or our ancestors. We replaced Him with ourselves. This is the religion of Humanism. Humans are the center or highest expression of life. 

It all makes sense. If humans are the ultimate life reality, then humans are the ones to whom we would send our prayers.  In 1863, the President would announce that we were in desperate need of help, recognize Almighty God was the only one who could save us, and proclaim a national day of prayer and fasting, encouraging people to ask God to save us from destruction. But in 2016, most leaders, and most people will say that there are a few mentally ill people or religious extremists doing crazy stuff, so we should clamp down on bad actions with more laws, and send each other prayers, love, good vibes, energy hugs, or whatever turns you on.

Think about your Facebook for a minute. If you ask for prayer for an issue you are facing, how often do people say, "Sending prayers your way"? I'm not trying to condemn the intent. But people used to say, "I will pray for you." This meant they would send prayers to God for you. Now they are sending prayers your way. 

This is a significant shift. We used to turn our attention upward to find deliverance from God, but we now turn our attention to each other to find good feelings in desperate times. We send prayers to people rather than God. Then we wonder why we are not rescued. We send prayers like we send gift cards or flowers. We ignore the only One who can truly save, and send our thoughts of sadness to people in need. We point to each other rather than pointing the hurting to God. We have abandoned the One who answers prayer, so how do we expect to receive the blessing of prayer?

The Bible talks a lot about prayer. The word 'pray' can be found hundreds of times in Scripture. But not once are we told to send prayers to people. Rather, we are constantly told that we should send prayers TO God FOR people. Here is one mention of the purpose of prayer...

"Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7)

That's a pretty good word for America today... don't you think? In fact, it is probably a good word for you today. Today you will likely have a need. When you meet your crisis, it will be natural for you to seek support from friends. And that is NOT a bad thing. We were made to support each other in difficult times. But know that your ultimate help does not come from your horizontal relationships. It comes from your vertical relationship. Pray to God. If your friend is going through something, give them love. Send them a card or a note. But send your prayers for them to Heaven, where the God of the universe is waiting to work on their behalf.

"Where will my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth."
(Psalm 121:1-2)

In case you were wondering what a Christian prayer looks like, here is a basic prayer without specifics...

"Dear Father God, I am limited, but I know you are infinite. I have no right to approach you based on my own deeds, for I know I fall short of what You created me to be. I repent of my sin. But You have been good to me. Thank you for giving me life, my family and friends, my health, my job, and every good thing. I do need help today. I need you to give me wisdom for dealing with a certain area of my life. I also need a special provision for an unexpected bill that has come up. I thank You for being my Provider, and I trust You to take care of me. I say and ask all of these things in the name of Jesus Christ, who opened up the avenue for relationship with You... Amen."

It is the day before Thanksgiving. Tomorrow many Americans will gather around tables to enjoy good food and fellowship. A good number of those will give thanks before eating. Some will even take time to let everyone share something for which they are thankful. For at least one day we will be good at giving thanks. Or will we...?

Last night it struck me that being thankful is different than being happy. In our culture, we are professionals at being happy. We know how to express good things when we experience good things. When things are going our way, we are like a party in a bottle of flesh. But that isn't the same as thankfulness. Thankfulness implies an exchange. For instance, most people are thankful when someone does something good for them. But in a culture that largely rejects a personal God, there is a lack of true thankfulness. People are happy when good things happen. But most do not give thanks when good things happen, because they think the events are random, or they think they made the blessings happen themselves. 

Most people are happy when the electricity comes back on after a storm, but they aren't as much thankful as they are happy. They are happy because something good happened to them. But they don't see it as a blessing from someone else. It is just what happens after a storm where the electricity goes out. Happiness has largely replaced thankfulness. 

Just think about what most people are thankful for versus the things for which they are happy. The list of things they are happy for is much longer than the list of things for which they are thankful. We are a generation that is more in tune with our aggrandizement than gratitude... because we have edged God out of our lives. We don't pray, until things get horrible. We don't petition God for our daily needs and wants. We just go after these things and "make them happen ourselves," hoping the stars will align and we will get what we want. Then when we do get our wish, we were "lucky". This is why Thanksgiving is such an odd holiday anymore.  We will drive cars we chose, to sit in houses we earned, to eat food we cooked, and talk with family we just happened to be born into. You cannot disregard God in your culture and retain a healthy sense of thanksgiving.

It is not unusual for a culture that believes in Evolution to drift from thankfulness to happiness. After all, we are all just here by random happenstance, right? Who deserves thanks when everything is the luck of the draw? But the Christian knows better. That's why we are so thankful, We realize that every breath, every blessing is not random, but designed by a God who loves us and desires relationship with us. I have food, and clothing, and housing because God is good. If I earned the money to have these things, even that ability and increase came from Him. So, I am happy, but mostly I am thankful. The Bible tells us...

Every generous act and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights; with Him there is no variation or shadow cast by turning. By His own choice, He gave us a new birth by the message of truth so that we would be the firstfruits of His creatures. (James 1:17-18)

The gifts in my life have come from a source, so I am not just glad they are here, I have gratitude for this fact. I am not just happy. I am thankful. If someone were to give me a check for $1,000,000.00 , I would be happy. I would also be thankful. I would tell that person, "Thank you." I would also tell God, "Thank you." If I received an envelope with $1,000,000.00, I would be happy. I would also be thankful. I may not know who sent the envelope. So I could not tell them, "Thank you." But I would still tell God, "Thank you." Happiness is our response when we realize that something good happens. Thankfulness is our response when we recognize that someone caused something good to happen. Happiness can be a solitary act, but thanksgiving always involves more than an individual.

Happiness is a gift that is used during an experience. But thankfulness is an exchange. You can be happy all by yourself. But being thankful is a community experience. You can be happy without being thankful. You can be thankful without being happy. But you can't be thankful without being blessed.

​Today you will likely experience something that will bring happiness. It's good to be happy. Happiness is good. But it is better when topped with thankfulness. Happiness without thankfulness is like grandma's table without the feast. You can have it on its own, but why would you?

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It is the week of the Thanksgiving holiday. I have been thinking about the nature of thankfulness. I recently heard someone recounting God's goodness in their life. They have had some struggles that I have not had. I began to tear up as I listened to them lean on Christ in their story. Then they stopped and said, "I don't know how people go through such things without Jesus."

This is a profound statement of wonder. I've said it. You have probably said it. In pastoral ministry I have had to make many hospital visits, some to Children's Hospital. I've seen people go through some horrible things with their children. Many do call out to God during these difficult times. But most people are not in right relationship with God. So most people going through tragedy are not in right relationship with God. I have often asked, "How do these people go through this awful experience without Jesus?"

There are a couple of answers. The first answer that comes to my mind is, "Not very well." The fact is, some of these families don't actually make it. The worst situations often take a great toll. Some marriages do not survive crisis. Some people go into depression. Others into addiction. And some even take their own lives... or worse, they become violent towards others. Bad situations experienced without Christ are a perfect storm for emotional, relational, and physical disaster.

Yet there are many who do make it through. I don't know that anyone makes it through the worst of times unhurt. But many do survive them, even without a good relationship with Jesus. This is because God created us with resilience. While God designed us to live forever in a holy state, He knew we would rebel and be affected by sin and brokenness. He knew we would face things that were too much to handle on our own. He wanted us to call out and reach out for Him to save us from our destruction. The only way for us to survive long enough under the crushing weight of sin and death was for us to have a supernatural resilience. While there are some spiritual elements that only Christians possess, God has offered a measure of grace, mercy, hope, faith, love, joy, etc. to everyone. It is a taste of what can be. This is enough to help most people make it through the worst in hopes that they will arrive at the best.

In fact, it is this measure of spiritual help given to everyone that enables us to come into proper relationship with God. Think of it as 'common grace'. Everyone has some. It is how a world full of sinners doesn't just entirely self-destruct and kill each other in one generation. While everyone is not righteous-good, most people, even those who aren't Christians, are decent-good. You don't have to be a Christian to stop and help an elderly lady change her flat tire in the rain. Then there is the grace that goes before saving grace. It is a part of saving grace, but it reaches into a person before they surrender to Christ. It is a supernatural reaching of God that sustains them in difficulty and points them to Christ... their only hope. This is called 'prevenient grace.' It is God's way of helping truly helpless people find help.

Obviously being right with Christ is a great help in surviving and thriving through problems. It is a game-changer. But it is not a guarantee. There are plenty of Christians who let go of God in the hardest of times. This is a sad truth, but very real. However, it is always better to willingly be in the center of God's hand when going through life's storms. It is great that we can find Christ in the storm, but it is more wonderful when we can rest in His hand through the storms.

This understanding that we can go through things with God or without Him is one of the basic truths of life. The apostle Paul wrote this to the early Christians...

At that time you were without the Messiah, excluded from the citizenship of Israel, and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus, you who were far away have been brought near by the blood of the Messiah. (Ephesians 2:12-13)

You may survive the hardest things of life without Christ. But you will never enter into eternity without Him. Those who have come to know Him would testify that not only is eternity better with Christ, but even the temporal is more bearable with Him. For while each human has a measure of peace, hope, faith, etc. for going through difficulties, the Christian has these elements in unlimited supply through Jesus Christ. So maybe the question is not, "How do people make it through this broken life without Jesus?", but rather, "Why would people try to make it through this broken life without Jesus?"

Today, trust in Christ, no matter your storm. And reach out to share your hope and faith with someone who may only have a little bit. God wants them to have an unlimited supply. He doesn't want them to be crushed by the worst of life. He wants them to have life, and have it in abundance.

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I like Christmas as much as the next person. But I do like to get through Thanksgiving before we turn to the chaos that has become the advent season. Last night I was at a church service that was dedicated to giving thanks. We sang songs requested by the people in attendance. But the price for requesting a song was a testimony. "You want to sing a song? You have to give a testimony of thanksgiving."

It was a great time with plenty of laughter and tears as people recounted God's goodness. Some of the thanksgiving testimonies were sort of generic, while others were very detailed with moving accounts of God's faithfulness in the lives of people who were far from Him. But I was struck by the consistency of the testimonies. The most common themes were...

I am thankful for salvation.
I am thankful for a Christian heritage.
I am thankful for my church family.

Now these may seem like obvious 'go to' points of praise. But there was something very real about them. Nobody mentioned that they were thankful for their car, or cellphone, or house, or promotion, or dashing good looks, or any number of things we seem to value most highly in our culture. The things mentioned were not the things we will spend loads of money and time on during the next month. No... they were the things money can't buy. They were the things people talk about when they are at the end of their life.

​Salvation is the most amazing thing. To be forgiven and set free from the penalty, pollution, and power of sin with no effort on our part is a blessing beyond words. If you have been given eternal life, this will always be the greatest cause of praise. Nothing even comes close... not even that cute little dress you've had your eye on for the last 2 weeks.

A Christian heritage is something else you have absolutely nothing to do with. You  don't choose it. You can't buy it. You are born into it... or you are not. God does not save people based on their parents' relationship. But a Christian heritage definitely gives a child a head start in the spiritual race. Each person has to make their own decision about God, but God has designed the family as His primary method of passing along the torch of faith. We don't always appreciate Christian heritage until later in life, but it is truly one of the great blessings of life. 

The Church is often maligned and misrepresented. We often hear about scandals, and money-hungry preachers. We hear about back-biting and hypocrites. The Church is often painted as an utterly broken organization. ANd while we certainly have our problems... we also have the purpose of being the primary avenue of God's grace and salvation in this broken and sinful world. The fact is, for every problem in the Church, we also have to recognize that God's Spirit moves with an extreme level of power and freedom in the Church that He does not in the world. You can find fault in the Church, but it is where you also find faith. The Church is where love, peace, joy, comfort, holiness, and acceptance are found in great abundance. You want to sense God's presence? Get involved in the Church.

Let the peace of the Messiah, to which you were also called in one body, control your hearts. Be thankful. Let the message about the Messiah dwell richly among you, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, and singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. (Colossians 3:15-18)

There is absolutely nothing wrong with thanking God for material blessings. Every good and perfect gift comes from God. It is right to be thankful for temporal stuff that you enjoy. To not thank God for food, and clothing, and even our toys would be a sin. Gratitude is a wonderful thing. But when we are given a chance to publicly proclaim our thanks, it is best to thank God for the eternal.

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