Well here we are, it is the night before Thanksgiving. This is one of my favorite holidays and not just because of the food. On this day we give thanks for all we have been blessed with. Originally "Thanksgiving Day" was to give thanks for the safe arrival to this land and all the bounty of resources it possessed.

So, in keeping with the tradition of Thanksgiving I will reflect on this last year and the thing(s) I have to be thankful for.

Lets get the obvious out of the way first, my new Granddaughter.
Yep, she is by far the greatest thing that has happened to me, especially in the last year. However, not just because she is beautiful, or sweet or that she smells just perfect. I am thankful for all of those but there is something even more unique and personal.
The world is a busy place. We all seem to have more to do than we have time to do it. We over schedule, get overwhelmed becoming over worked and this causes us to become overstressed. The events that cause this overload go by many different labels. For some of us it could be a job, sometimes we call them ministry or charity. Others may even find family overloads us. Why does it sometimes seem that even good things overload us?
The answer to this is where my Granddaughter comes in. When she was born, it got me thinking. Why or how can the good things in life i.e. our jobs, ministries or family sometimes wear on us. Looking at my beautiful Grandchild it came to me.
Motivation. When I am motivated properly I can and have achieved amazing things. Motivation impacts the way we do our jobs, our ministries and how we relate to our family. Motivation can also change the way the issues of life wear on us.
So, what does my little precious Grandchild have to do with this? She reminded my about what our motivation should be...love! Now I am not talking about what passes for love these days. I am talking about old fashion love. The kind of love that has existed since the beginning of time. You see I love ice cream, but it doesn't motivate me to achieve or to any real action.
You see I love my Granddaughter, and I can say with out reservation that I would give my life to protect hers. There is literally nothing I would not do to provide for her safety. But, lets put this is perspective. My Granddaughter does not love me. She really does not even recognize who I am. If she was being threatened with harm, I would give my life to protect her. Why would I do such a thing? If she thought I was a fool to do that would I still sacrifice for her? Of coarse I would. What if her parents never told her of my sacrifice for her? Would I still sacrifice if I knew that they would not tell her about me? Yes I would! What if I could see what she would become, and if she doesn't fulfill her potential? I would still die for her!
You see 2000 years ago a man lived and like us faced all the same trials and struggles we do today. And in his early 30's was killed. Since his death some have called him a fool. Others have called him a liar. He said of himself, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life." (John 5:24) There have been people since the time of Jesus who have denied him as the Christ, others have refused to tell their children of his sacrifice.
So, what was the motivation of Christ? LOVE!!!
You see, Christ knew that some would deny him, others would lie about him and others would call him a fool, but it was love that motivated him. It was not what would we do with the information that motivated him. It was not our acts of kindness, our family or job that moved him to act, it was love.
This year as I hold my Granddaughter it will not matter what her future holds or what she thinks of me that will cause me to sacrifice for her, it will be love that motivates me. A pure love, a Godly love.
You see there are no guarantees that she will love me or even claim me as her family. In the same way Christ died for us! Many not loving him or claiming him, yet he went to the cross to die in our place. Why would he do that? What motivated Him? LOVE!

So, I will love my Granddaughter and be thankful that I understand real love, the kind of love that sacrifices, the kind of love that is without condition and never looks for a payback. And my prayer for each of you is that you will experience and understand this kind of love.