God of All Blessings, God of All Power

I bless God every chance I get;
my lungs expand with his praise.

2 I live and breathe God;
if things aren’t going well, hear this and be happy:

3 Join me in spreading the news;
together let’s get the word out.

4 God met me more than halfway,
he freed me from my anxious fears.

5 Look at him; give him your warmest smile.
Never hide your feelings from him.

6 When I was desperate, I called out,
and God got me out of a tight spot.

7 God’s angel sets up a circle
of protection around us while we pray.

8 Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see—
how good God is.
Blessed are you who run to him.

9 Worship God if you want the best;
worship opens doors to all his goodness.

-Psalm 34 The Message

There is so much to be thankful for in this season we celebrate Thanksgiving. Through there may be grief, anxiety and all life throws at us; God's catching it all, and like seeds He is throwing it in the soil where He tends to it faithfully. When we feel we are being buried, and everything looks dark, He is there. We start growing through these pains, and the more we thank God the taller we stand. And the more joy we attain, the more grace we give. This is Eucharisteo lived out. We are not owed anything that is commercially wrapped in Thanksgiving, but we count them as gifts when we do experience them. For food on our table, for family that surrounds us, for warmth, for love, for new beginnings for some of us. The hard things we must count as God knowing best, and praise Him in grief: God You give and take away, Blessed be your name. Can we say this at Thanksgiving? Though it cuts our heart wide open. Maybe that's what God wants, a cut open heart that spills out to Him bearing truth.

My testimony of living Eucharisteo is tattooed right there on my wrist, and I tell this to all who ask, the only way to thankfulness, to be joyful, and to live in grace is under the cross and above the sun. Under the cross of Christ Jesus, whose blood was shed for us. The cross that set us free and saved us. Above the sun, not living or seeking this world. Chasing the wind will leave you unsatisfied. Chasing what the world wants will never be enough. You will never be able to work enough, earn enough, have enough. Only Jesus is enough. He has all the power!

This is what I have pondered this Thanksgiving season, God has all the power. Listen to what Job says about God's power! (and didn't he know it!?)

“God stretches the northern sky over empty space and hangs the earth on nothing. He wraps the rain in his thick clouds, and the clouds don’t burst with the weight. He covers the face of the moon, shrouding it with his clouds. He created the horizon when he separated the waters: he set the boundary between day and night. The foundations of heaven tremble; they shudder at his rebuke. By his power the sea grew calm. By his skill he crushed the great sea monster. His Spirit made the heavens beautiful, and his power pierced the gliding serpent. These are just the beginning of all that he does, merely a whisper of his power. Who, then, can comprehend the thunder of his power?”

God has the power to:
> Sustain all that is
> Brings dead things alive
> Salvation -- Creating new life
> Gives us confident hope
> Eternity & The Kingdom of God to rule and reign
> Overcome the flesh & overpower sin

All this "merely a whisper of His power."

Oh God! You have all the power! The power to fling stars in the sky, an to wipe them out. The power to keep the sun from shining. You have the power to breathe life into our bones and dust, and the power to snatch it right back. Your power controls today, tomorrow, and the past -- eternity; forever belongs to you and no one else. You have more power than Buddah, and all the past prophets that claimed to be another way or religion. You are alive, and they are not. You are truth, you are peace, you are the blesser. There is nothing that gets past you. You are all knowing, from the tiniest insect, to the little bird that nests, the cow that grazes in your pastures. You know who takes their first breath, and breathes their last. You know it all. You are a whisper, you are a loud clap of thunder, a still sea, and roaring; crashing wave. We know your power, we know your blessing, we know your rebuke. You are God, we are not. We worship you!