Enter into His gates with Thanksgiving! Yes, I know the Thanksgiving holiday was last week. Yet everyday is a day to be thankful to God for His goodness and mercy.

In the book of Psalms, chapter 100 and verse 4 we read: ‘Enter into His gates with Thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him and bless His name.’

We all have a lot to be thankful for. I have a lot to be thankful for. I went to the doctor today, and I am still in COMPLETE REMISSION! Praise the Lord!

God is good to us all. He loves us. We love Him because He first loved us (1 John, chapter 4; verse 9).

I encourage you to take some time and reflect on your lives, and just begin to count the blessings we receive each day. Our homes, jobs, food, clothing; financial resources, our health and strength; friends, neighbors, family members, personal freedoms; including the freedom to attend a church of your choosing. These are things that so many of us take for granted. Give God some thanks for those blessings and all of the others that you have received. If you lack any of those things that I mentioned, I want to encourage you to seek God and His will for your life. Having a relationship with the Lord is so very important. In fact, it is THE MOST important relationship that you’ll ever have because your eternity depends on it.

So how do you do that? How do you have a relationship with God? It is simple.

Step 1: Ask for His forgiveness of your sins. We have all sinned in our lives. What is sin? Sin is breaking God’s law. You will receive His forgiveness when you ask for it. Guaranteed. There are many scriptures that teach on God’s forgiveness. Here are just a few of them:

1 John 1:9- If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. This is your guarantee!

Ephesians 1:7- In Him we have redemption through His (Jesus) blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.

Hebrews 10:17- … then He adds, ‘Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.’

Step 2: Once you receive forgiveness, ask Jesus to be your Lord and Saviour. This is how you gain access to the Heavenly Father. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” If you want a relationship with God the Father, you must accept His son Jesus as your Lord and Saviour.

Step 3: Get a copy of the Bible and start reading God’s word daily. I encourage you to get a New King James Version, with the words of Jesus Christ in red letters. I have found this version to be very easy to understand.

Step 4: Pray– often! What is prayer? Prayer is having conversation with God. He hears us. He may not respond instantly, but no prayer is ignored. He hears. He listens. He will respond. Just wait. The response will not always be what we hoped for, or even expected. But He will respond. God is not a genie in a bottle that is required to give us our every wish and desire. He is the Creator of the universe. We are to submit to His will. He does not submit to ours. Proverbs 3:6 says, ‘in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.’ Submit to God. Submit your life to God. He loves you, and He knows what is best– for all of us.

Be blessed!