Something to be Thankful for: Mercy

Thanks:
      \THaŋ(k)s\
noun
      An expression of gratitude.

Giving:
      \ˈɡiviŋ\
adjective
      providing love or other emotional support; caring.

• Forgiveness
• Grace
• Mercy

 What if God, although choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction?
Romans 9:22

What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory?…
Romans 9:23

“I have always found that mercy bears richer fruits than strict justice.”
~ Abraham Lincoln ~

And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness…
Exodus 34:6

…maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.”
Exodus 34:7

And the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
Exodus 33:19

“I think that is a better thing than thanksgiving: thanks-living. How is this to be done? By a general cheerfulness of manner, by an obedience to the command of Him by whose mercy we live, by a perpetual, constant delighting of ourselves in the Lord, and by a submission of our desires to His will.”
~ Charles Spurgeon ~

Something to be Thankful for: grace

Thanks:
      \THaŋ(k)s\
noun
      An expression of gratitude.

Giving:
      \ˈɡiviŋ\
adjective
      providing love or other emotional support; caring.

• Forgiveness
• Grace
• Mercy

      Grace:
      \ɡrās\
noun
      Unmerited favor of God towards man.

“Grace is the very opposite of merit… Grace is not only undeserved favor, but it is favor shown to the one who has deserved the very opposite.”
~ Harry Ironside ~

For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.
Titus 2:11-12

Are YOU Thankful For God’s Grace?

The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”
Jonah 1:1-2

But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord.
Jonah 1:3

Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship. But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep.
Jonah 1:4-5

The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.”
Jonah 1:6

Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah.
Jonah 1:7

So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?”
Jonah 1:8

He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”

This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.)
Jonah 1:10

The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?”
Jonah 1:11

“Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.”
Jonah 1:12

This is the proclamation he issued in Nineveh: Do not let people or animals, herds or flocks, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink. But let people and animals be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence. Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.”
Jonah 3:7-9

But to Jonah this seemed very wrong, and he became angry.
Jonah 4:1

If I’m not showing grace… have I forgotten the grace I’ve been shown?

Are YOU Thankful for the grace you’ve been shown?

Is there someone in your life that needs to be shown Grace?

Something to be Thankful for: Forgiveness

Thanks:
      \THaŋ(k)s\
noun
      An expression of gratitude.

      Giving:
      \ˈɡiviŋ\
adjective
      providing love or other emotional support; caring.

      Thanksgiving:
      \thaŋ(k)s-ˈgi-viŋ\
noun
      the expression of gratitude, especially to God.

• Forgiveness
• Grace
• Mercy

Forgive: stop feeling angry or resentful toward (someone) for an offense, flaw, or mistake.

Forgiveness: the action or process of forgiving or being forgiven.

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.
Ephesians 1:7

If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
2 Chronicles 7:14

Four conditions of Forgiveness
• humble yourself by admitting your sins;
• praying to God – asking for forgiveness;
• seeking God continually;
• and turning from sinful behavior.

Are you Thankful you have received forgiveness?

Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.
Matthew 18:21-22

“Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.
Matthew 18:23-25

“At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.
Matthew 18:26-27

“But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.
Matthew 18:28

“His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’ “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt.
Matthew 18:29-30

What Is Forgiveness?

Psychologists generally define forgiveness as a conscious, deliberate decision to release feelings of resentment or vengeance toward a person or group who has harmed you, regardless of whether they actually deserve your forgiveness.

When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened.
Matthew 18:3

“Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’
Matthew 18:32-33

In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
Matthew 18:34

“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”
Matthew 18:35

Unforgiveness is choosing to stay trapped in a jail cell of bitterness, serving time for someone else’s crime.

“Forgiveness is the key that unlocks the door of resentment and the handcuffs of hatred. It is a power that breaks the chains of bitterness and the shackles of selfishness.”
~ Corrie Ten Boom ~

Are you thankful for forgiveness?

Have people in your life experienced the same forgiveness you received?

Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
Ephesians 4:32