Prepare the Way...with Thanksgiving!

"So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
Colossians 2:6-7

With the red and green lights already sprouting up around my neighborhood, it’s easy to tell that Christmas is coming! And while I look forward with anticipation to the “most wonderful time of the year” – I also suspect that Thanksgiving is the perfect preparation for our celebration of Christ’s birth. While Christmas can at times get all tangled up with our consumer-driven culture – Thanksgiving seems to resist commercialization and remains a profoundly spiritual exercise. It is the giving of thanks that reminds us of the goodness of God and the blessings he has poured out on our lives. It is the giving of thanks that reminds us of God’s love and presence made flesh through the love and presence of family and friends. It is thanksgiving that prepares us for the celebration of Christmas!

And I believe it is the giving of thanks that will propel us as a church family to Prepare the Way for God’s future in our church! Week after week I hear stories of people and families whose lives are in the process of being transformed by the power of Christ. Week after week I see people investing their time, talent and treasure in serving the world in the name of Jesus and I am so proud – and thankful - to be part of FBCG!

As you know, Prepare the Way is an initiative to reduce or eliminate FBCG’s debt between now and the end of February, 2010. While I am absolutely convinced this is the right thing for us to do as a church family and that through our collective generosity God can do far more than we can imagine – I am equally convinced that our motive must be thanksgiving. We can give out of duty or obligation or guilt – but the greatest joy comes when we give out of love and thanksgiving!

As you consider your part in Prepare the Way I encourage you to do two things:

• Remember that Prepare the Way is a challenge to give above and beyond your normal giving


• Make your gift(s) to Prepare the Way an expression of your thanksgiving to God for all he has already given to you

May you enjoy the joy and peace of Christ as you gather with family and friends this Thursday, and may your hearts be prepared for the celebration of the Advent season!

Thanks for being part of the FBCG family!