My beloved spiritual children in Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.

"GIVING THANKS ALWAYS FOR ALL THINGS TO GOD THE FATHER IN THE NAME OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST..." (Ephesians 5:20).

"For Christians, it is the Holy Spirit (v.18), and the joy is New Covenant worship of the Holy Trinity, the Eucharist (giving thanks, v. 20): to the Father through the Son incarnate (Lord in v. 19; "Lord Jesus Christ" in v. 20), in the Spirit (v. 18). He who is made drunk with wine totters and sways, but he who is inebriated with the Holy Spirit is rooted in Christ, and gloriously sober."

Saint Basil the Great spoke and wrote about the necessity and significance of offering thanks to the Almighty and Life-Giving God, the Creator, as early as the fourth century. He writes:

"When you sit down to eat, pray. When you eat bread, do so thanking Him for being so generous to you. If you drink wine, be mindful of Him Who has given it to you for your pleasure and as a relief in sickness. When you dress, thank Him for his kindness in providing you with clothes. When you look at the sky and the beauty of the stars, throw yourself at God's feet and adore Him Who is His wisdom has arranged things in this way. Similarly, when the sun goes down and when it rises, when you are asleep or awake, give thanks to God, Who created and arranged all things for your benefit, to have you know love, and praise their Creator."

The holy Apostle Paul in his epistles to the Churches stressed strongly that every Christian is to "give thanks always for all things to God the Father..." (Ephesians 5:20), for this is God's will for all of you who belong to Christ Jesus: Ephesians 5:20; 1 Thessalonians 5:18. These were not empty words. The holy Apostle lived that important sense of thankfulness, even when he was persecuted and while suffering in the hands of the ungodly.

Everything in our earthly life has a purpose and meaning, including suffering, struggling, sorrow, joy, life, death, success, and failure, youthfulness, and old age, pain, and pleasure. It is through these human experiences that we mature spiritually and grow in Christ. The numerous challenges which we confront contribute to our attaining wisdom and humility. Our resolve, our determination, our love, our dedication, and our convictions are made stronger.

Appreciating and thanking our Most-Loving Lord is a way of acknowledging and declaring openly that all things come from above, from Him. We have nothing and we are nothing without Him in our lives. How can we not thank Him every minute of the day for all that He gives us and for His infinite love and care? We depend on Him for all things just like my child depends on me, his parent, to provide him/her for all which he or she needs.

Not thanking our Savior is a sign of ingratitude and arrogance. Saint Paul comprehends that thankfulness is not just a duty or just one of many virtues that characterize the life of the Christian believer, but rather that it is the characteristic of our belief in Christ.

"Then He took the seven loaves and the fish and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples, and the disciples gave to the multitude" (Matthew 15:36). Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was thankful to His Heavenly Father Who bestows gifts and life. Jesus reveals to us, in a very clear way, how important it is for us to always express our gratitude to God. He said, "Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. And I know that You always hear Me..." (John 11:41-42). In these verses, we also see Saint John the Evangelist's insistence on relating Jesus' dependency upon the Father for all His works. Just as Jesus was dependent on His Father, we too, are dependent on Him for all things.

We constantly see our Lord Jesus Christ express His gratitude-giving thanks. Should we not as creatures created by Him respond in kind? The Apostle of all nations, Saint Paul advises us to give "thanks always for all things to God the Father." "For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good things to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!" (Matthew 7:8-11).

"I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth" (Psalm 34:1).

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"Glory Be To GOD For All Things!" - Saint John Chrysostomos

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With sincere agape in His Holy Diakonia (Ministry)
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George