Let's find the subjects of thank

1 Thess 5:18 Let's find the subjects of thank
Let me ask you some questions on this thanksgiving Sunday. Have you lived your life with thanksgiving or with complaint ? Have you comparatively confessed 'Thank you Lord !' or 'Why God ? in this 2002 ? When is the most thankful moment and the most complained moment in your life ? Who do you want to give thanks to ? Who do you want to make complaint against ? What are the subjects of thank and complaint ?
Let me tell you my answer about these question. My life can be divided into two periods of time. Before I was 26 years old, and before I did not meet God, my life was comparatively full of complaint. But after that time on, my life has been comparatively full of thank. And I am full of thank now in 2002.
The most thankful moment in my life was the moment that I heard the voice of God. And the most complained moment in my life was the moment that the thing happened to me. People do not want to tell the most complained moment to others. And they do not want the complained moment happened again to them.
Especially I'd like to give thank to my wife because she has attended early morning prayer meeting with faithfulness. And I'd like to give thank to all of you because you have followed me even though I have not satisfied you. And I'd like to give thank to my parent who have sacrificed themselves for me.
Of course, it is God that I have to give thanks most. I cannot tell all my thanks to God with the human words. So I think I have to give thanks to God forever in the kingdom of heaven with the heavenly words. If we find the complained subjects, we can find them so much that we can tell them to others forever. But we want to find the subjects of thank, and we want to tell them forever to God. I want you to find together the subjects of thank.
Just after I visited some patients in the hospital, I always gave thanks to God, "God, thank you for giving me health so that I can visit them." My beloved, do you know how painful it is especially when they have diseases ? Few weeks ago, a singer Kil Eun Jong confessed that she has the artificial anus because she had cancer of the rectum, and she cannot not move the bowels by herself so that she has to go to the hospital every three day to empty the bowels. She says, "It makes me very hard and shameful. If you can go to the toilet, you have to thank."
Of course, we Christians may have the diseases, and we may feel painful because of the disease. But we have to thank as we remember that there are many worse patients than us. And we have to thank as we remember that God healed my diseases, and he will heal my sickness, and by Jesus' wounds we are healed.(Isa 53:5)
And we have to give thanks to God, for God has given us food, clothing and shelter. Nowadays some people or children might say, "Why do we have to give thank to God for that ? All the other people have food, clothing and shelter like us." But take a close look at the others. There are still lots of people who lack of food, clothing and shelter. Some of them die of hunger today. Therefore we have to thank God, for he has given us food. Psalms 136:25 says, "Give thanks to the Lord who gives food to every creature."
And Corinthians 15:57 says, "Thanks be to God ! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." It means that by faith in Jesus we can overcome the world, Satan and sins. Without faith we had to be under the curse of Satan, and we had to live painful and sorrowful life. But by faith we can enjoy the peace and happiness of the kingdom of heaven, and we can inherit the kingdom of God. That's why we have to give thanks to God.
In 1 Timothy 1:12-13 Paul says, "I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he consider me faithful, appointing me to his service. Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man." And he also says, "Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift."(2 Cor 9:15)
The one of the characteristic trends of the last days is 'ungrateful'.(2 Tim 3:2) But the bible says, "Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." "Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving."(Eph 5:4) "I will thank you, O Lord, with all my heart."(Psalms 138:1) "At midnight I rise to give you thanks."(Psalms 119:62) "Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise ; give thanks to him and praise his name."(Psalms 100:4)
My beloved, the kingdom of heaven is the place where we enter with thanksgiving, and the church is also place where we come with thanksgiving. I want you to thank God on this thanksgiving day. We have a lot of subjects that we give thanks to God. Let's find the subjects of thank and give thanks to God.
If we thank God for candlelight, God will give us electric light. If we thank God for electric light, God will give us moonlight. If we thank God for moonlight, God will give us sunlight. If we thank God for sunlight, God will give us the kingdom of heaven where we do not need candlelight, electric light, moonlight and sunlight. I hope all of you to be there on that day. Amen !