BARRIERS TO THANKSGIVING

(The original author unknown; reworked by David Riggs)

Intro.
   A. 1 Thess. 5:18; Eph. 5:20; Heb. 13:15
   B. A young man shared an apartment with three other graduate
      students who also had part-time jobs while in college. Each    
      took turns preparing the meals, which usually consisted of     
      canned vegetables, hamburger meat, baked potato, and was barely
      edible. No matter how poor the meal was, Joe always said, "THAT
      WAS A MIGHTY FINE DINNER." One evening the meal was
      worse than usual, and Joe made his regular comment. One said,
      "Why do you always say that when this was hardly fit for human
      consumption?" Joe answered, "I come from a family of 11
      children. My mother would spend all afternoon in the kitchen
      preparing dinner. One night when she called us to the table,   
      there was only a plate and straw on each plate. My father      
      looked at it and asked, "What is this straw doing on my plate?"
      Mother said, "Oh! you noticed. This is the first time you have 
      given any indication that you noticed what was on your plate." 
      Joe then said, "I vowed that I would always express my         
      appreciation to the person who had prepared my meal." (From    
      "Dear Abby" 11/21/96) 
   C. We often take for granted things for which we should be        
      grateful.
      1. Let's consider some barriers to thanksgiving, with a view of
         breaking down those barriers.

I. Barrier #1 - Thoughtlessness
   A. It's interesting that "think" and "thank" come from the same
      Anglo-Saxon root word.
      1. Often we are not grateful because we just don't think.
      2. We don't think of what God has done for us.
      3. We don't think of God's love and care for us.
      4. Many are like hogs feeding at the trough, eating, and never
         looking up to see where their food is coming from.
   B. Many of the Psalms are beautiful songs of thanksgiving. Psalm
      30:1-12; 103:1-5; 105:1-3; 106:1-3
      1. Thus, the Psalmist enumerates the ways in which he had
         been blessed.
      2. In what ways are we blessed?
         a. We need to give thanks for Bibles, this building we
            meet in, our teachers, song leaders, and our fellow
            church members.
         b. We need to give thanks for forgiveness, redemption,
            knowledge of truth, and God's mercy and grace.
         c. We might give thanks for the big things, but often
            forget the small things.
      3. Dr. Paul Rees tells the true story of a man whose job was to
         transport people who had been committed to a mental
         hospital. After delivering a patient one day, he was walking
         back to his car when he heard a voice call out, "Hey you!"  
         It came from one of the upper floors. Looking up, the man
         called back, "Are you speaking to me?" "Yes, I am," came
         the reply, "I want to ask you a question. Have you ever
         thanked God that you have a healthy mind?" To say the
         least, the driver was stunned. He said, "I suddenly realized
         that I had been bringing people to this facility for some
         fifteen years; yet, I had never once thanked God for a good
         mind!" Truly, let us learn to give thanks for the things we 
         so often take for granted.

II. Barrier #2 - Faithlessness
   A. Giving thanks is the spontaneous expression of those who have a
      genuine faith in God.
   B. People who refuse to believe can never really be thankful.     
      Rom. 1:20-21
   C. All gifts come from God. James 1:17
      1. If you don't give thanks, do you really believe all things
         come from God?
      2. Poor response to God is due to poor faith in God.
      3. Ted Malone, whose radio show came on early in the
         morning, told of the Idaho shepherd who wrote: "Will you,
         on your broadcast, strike the note 'A'?  I'm a sheepherder
         way out here on a ranch, far away from a piano. The only
         comfort I have is my old violin. It's all out of tune. Would
         you strike 'A' so that I might get in tune?" Malone honored
         the request. Later he received a "thank you" note from the
         distant shepherd saying, "Now I'm in tune." 
      4. One of the most tragic situations in life is when a         
         Christian, through his unfaithfulness, becomes "out of tune"
         with God.
         a. Through repentance and prayer we can be restored to
            our former relationship and be "in tune" once again.

III. Barrier #3 - Discontentment
   A. Before we can genuinely be thankful, we must develop
      contentment. Phil. 4:11-12; 1 Tim. 6:6-8
      1. Too many suffer from the "thanks...but" syndrome.
         a. They are grateful, but are not satisfied.
         b. They say "thanks," but ask, "how can I receive more?"
         c. They say "thanks," but ask "why didn't I receive
            something else?"
   B. Consider how the early pilgrims were grateful.
      1. Of the 102 who started on the voyage of the Mayflower, 46
         had died in the first year.
      2. Only 3 couples escaped death of one of their partners.
      3. They had only a few personal possessions, and lived in crude
         log huts.
      4. After those first hard years, they had a custom that at     
         their Thanksgiving Day dinner there would be five kernels of
         corn on each plate. Before the meal each person would be
         required to mention five things for which to be thankful.   
         The five kernels reminded them that at one time it was the  
         daily allotment of corn - five kernels per person per day.
      5. Instead of complaining about our hardships and problems,
         let us enumerate the things for which we can be thankful.

IV. Barrier #4 - Selfishness
   A. Those who have been blessed by God must learn to be a blessing.
   B. Matt. 18:23-35
      1. The servant owed his master an enormous sum. Each talent
         equaled 91 pounds. There are 16 oz. in a pound. He owed
         10,000 talents, and when multiplied, equaled about 16
         million dollars. It took about 15 years of labor to earn one
         talent; thus, it would take 150,000 years of labor to pay   
         his debt.
      2. His fellow servant owed him 100 denari, which was the
         common day's wages; thus, it would take about 100 days of
         labor to pay his debt.
      3. Not showing mercy to others indicates that we are not
         thankful for the mercy God has shown to us. Matt. 18:35
   C. Selfishness says:
      1. "Why should I be thankful? I earned it myself."
      2. "I deserved more than I received."
      3. "Why help others, they haven't helped me."
   D. Those who receive the letters written to Santa Clause say that
      they receive thousands of letters from Children requesting     
      things at Christmas, but, so far as they know, they have only  
      received one letter from a child thanking Santa Clause for the 
      gifts.
      1. I mention this only to show that selfishness, without
         thanksgiving, is in the hearts of many from an early age.

V. Barrier #5 - Failure Through Neglect
   A. Luke 17:11-19
      1. No doubt, the other nine lepers were thankful for their
         healing, but they failed to show their appreciation.
      2. Most of us are thankful for God's blessings, but through
         neglect we fail to express our appreciation.

Concl.
   A. Let's resolve to be thankful people.
   B. In Africa there is a fruit called the "taste berry." It is so  
      called because it changes a person's taste so that everything  
      eaten tastes sweet and pleasant. Sour fruit, even if eaten     
      several hours after the taste berry, becomes sweet and         
      delicious.
      1. Thanksgiving is the "taste berry" of Christianity. When our
         hearts are filled with gratitude, nothing seems unpleasantor
         overbearing to us. 
      2. Sorrowing heart, sweeten your grief with gratitude.
         Burdened soul, lighten your burden by singing God's praises.
         Disappointed one, dispel your heartache by making others
         grateful. Sick one, grow strong in your soul, thanking God
         that you are healthy and strong spiritually.
   C. Have we shown our appreciation to God for what He has done
      for us?
      1. We need to be thankful for the salvation God had provided.
      2. We should show our appreciation by obeying Him.

Chart:
Barriers To Thanksgiving

Barrier #1 - Thoughtlessness

Barrier #2 - Faithlessness

Barrier #3 - Discontentment

Barrier #4 - Selfishness

Barrier #5 - Failure Through Neglect