Thanksgiving is a Holy Declaration of What We SEE When We LIFT UP OUR EYES.

"Therefore, let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips GIVING THANKS to His name." (Heb. 13:15) In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you (1Thes. 5:18). Giving thanks always for all things (Eph. 5:20). Thanksgiving (eucharisteo, from which we get the word Eucharist) means to be aware of our blessings and be filled with gratitude. Thanksgiving opens the vaults of the treasures of the Kingdom. Opposite of Thanksgiving: Ungratefulness, Complaining and Murmuring Examples: 1. Hebrew children, "Nor let us . . . grumble, as [Israel] did, and were destroyed by the destroyer" (1 Cor. 10:9-10). 2. Some of his disciples "Do not grumble among yourselves" (John 6:43) 3. Judas- (John 12:4-6) Then said one of His disciples (Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, who was to betray Him) Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor? He said this, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief and held the moneybag and carried the things put in. Paul warned that, "in the last days . . . men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips" (2 Timothy 3:1-9). With Thanksgiving mentioned 6 x in Scripture: One of my favorites: (Col 4:2) Continue in prayer and watch in it with thanksgiving, Most thank God after the victory, after the provision, after the deliverance. 2 Kinds of thankfulness: After the victory or before the victory. Miriam and the people of Moses praised God and were thankful after the deliverance from the Egyptians. (Exo 15:1-6) Then the sons of Moses and Israel sang this song to Jehovah, and spoke, saying, I will sing to Jehovah, for He has triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider He has thrown into the sea. Jehovah is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will glorify Him, my father's God, and I will exalt Him, Jehovah is a Man of war; Jehovah is His name. Pharaoh's chariots and his army He has thrown into the sea; his chosen captains also are drowned in the Red Sea. The depths have covered them; they sank into the bottom like a stone. Your right hand, O Jehovah, has become glorious in power. Your right hand, O Jehovah, has dashed the enemy in pieces. But, Jehoshaphat and the Hebrews praised and thanked God before the victory. (2Ch 20:17-18-19) You shall not fight in this battle. Set yourselves and stand, and see the salvation of Jehovah with you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not fear nor be dismayed. Tomorrow go out against them, for Jehovah will be with you.And Jehoshaphat bowed his face to the ground. And all Judah and the people of Jerusalem fell before Jehovah, worshiping Jehovah. And the Levites, of the sons of the Kohathites and of the sons of the Korahites, stood up to praise Jehovah, the God of Israel with a loud voice on high. (2Ch 20:20-23) And they rose early in the morning and went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. And as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, Hear me, O Judah, and you people of Jerusalem. Believe in Jehovah your God, and so you shall be established. Believe His prophets, and so you shall be blessed. And he consulted with the people, and he appointed singers to Jehovah and praisers to praise the beauty of holiness as they went out before the army, and to say, Praise Jehovah, for His mercy endures forever. And when they began to sing and to praise, Jehovah set ambushes against the sons of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, who had come against Judah. And they were beaten. For the sons of Ammon and Moab stood up against the people of mount Seir to completely kill and destroy. And when they had made an end of the people of Seir, everyone helped to destroy another. Abraham and the Sacrifice of Isaac: (Gen 22:4-) Then on the third day, Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said to his young men, You stay here with the ass. And I and the boy will go on to this way and worship, and come again to you. And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took the fire in his hand, and a knife. And they both went together. And Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, My father. And he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood. But where is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering. So they both went together. And they came to the place which God had told him of. And Abraham built an altar there and laid the wood in order. And he bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on the wood. And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. And the Angel of Jehovah called to him from the heavens and said, Abraham! Abraham! And he said, Here am I. And He said, Do not lay your hand on the lad, nor do anything to him. For now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only one, from Me. And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked. And, behold, a ram behind him was entangled in a thicket by its horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son. We SEE that the Father hears us BEFORE we pray (John 17:1-2). This is why we can be thankful. It is all about:"Lifting up our eyes." "Whatever is true, whatever is honorable . . . is right, whatever is pure . . . lovely . . . of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things" (Phil. 4:8). Remember, Paul was writing to people in the ancient Roman world. It was full of evil, full of injustice, full of reasons to grumble and be upset; but instead, God calls His people to a higher realm, where we dwell on the things that are above. Jesus at the Tomb of Lazarus: (John 11:41-43) At the tomb of His dear friend Lazarus, Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, "Father, I thank YOU HAVE ALREADY HEARD ME." Imagine this kind of assurance! Jesus didn't need to beg or intercede. A command to the dead was all that was needed, "Lazarus, come forth." Our Invitation Revelation 4:1 After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, “Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.” *Symbol- door in heaven- access to heavenly places (John 1:51) A door standing open in heaven is the door of prophetic revelation. The first voice was that of the Lord Jesus Christ (1:10). The Lord summoned John to come in order that he might receive a heavenly perspective of things which must take place on Earth. What Christ shows us is the throne room where the fullness of Christ is offered. The trumpet is inviting us into the Spirit to see the throne room and its function within the kingdom of our heart. The trumpet is the revelation or revealing voice of Christ. The throne room is a symbol of the Kingdom of God and the present reign of Jesus Christ. The Father wants us to come up higher so that we may get a new perspective and see things from His vantage point. Those who have been shaped in the darkness of the secret place need to lift their vision and allow the Spirit to show us what will happen after ‘these things’. It is necessary to ‘come up here’ and enter through the door in heaven. This door is none other than Jesus Christ Himself. Only as we abide in Christ can we arise to a higher place of understanding and revelation of the plans of God. The enemy would love to have us so focused upon the problems and circumstances that we see nothing of what lies ahead of us. An earthly perspective weighs us down. It is understanding of what God has prepared for us that gives us the determination and stamina to keep pressing through to this new place. Thanksgiving is a holy declaration of what we SEE when we LIFT UP OUR EYES. WHAT DO YOU SEE?