Full Gospel Lighthouse Church, Inc.

624 Torringford West St., PO Box 1201, Torrington, CT 06790-1201

Phone: 1-(860)-489-4137
www.fglchurchtorrington.com
Pastor: Rev. Daniel Bossidy
November 2017

Dear Friend,
Greetings to you on this beautiful November day from everyone at
the church! This month is a reminder to us of being thankful for all we have, and
especially who we have in our lives.
In John 6 we read of two notable miracles the Lord performed. The first
was when He was given five barley loaves and two small fishes from a lad. He
told the disciples to have the men sit down (there were about 5,000 men, not
including the women and children!). "And Jesus took the loaves; and when
He had given thanks, He distributed to the disciples..." Everyone ate and
there was even twelve baskets left over!
The second miracle was later on that night. He departed into a mountain
alone to pray, while the disciples got in a ship and headed across the sea. They
got about half-way across when a great wind began to blow. It was night and the
waves arose and they were in trouble! But the Lord Jesus walked on the sea
towards them. They were afraid, but He said to them, "It is I; be not afraid."
When He came on board the ship, the Bible tells us immediately the ship was at
the land where they were going. There are many lessons we can glean from this
account, but something stood out to me as I read this. John 6:23 tells us,
"(Howbeit there came other boats from Tiberias nigh unto the place where
they did eat bread, after that the Lord had given thanks:)." Honestly, if I
wrote that account I probably would have mentioned the feeding of the 5,000
men, or the fact that the Lord walked on the water! My focus would have been
on the miracles. But John zeroed in on the giving of thanks. As a matter of fact,
there are other instances where the Lord performed absolute miracles, acts that
no common man could do, yet the Lord did them after giving thanks. Before
Lazarus was raised from the dead, for example, the Lord said, "Father, I thank
Thee that Thou hast heard Me" (John 11:41). I believe the thrust of the
message He got across (and the apostle John understood this), was the giving of
thanks should always precede anything we do. If it is a spiritual work or a
natural word, or even shopping: we should always be ready to give thanks.
Thanks acknowledges that Someone greater than you and I is always in control
of our circumstances. Someone greater than you and I not only has the thing we
need, but is always teaching us what to focus on. If we can get our eyes off of
self, off of the results of the miracles, and get our eyes fixed on the Miracle-
worker, our victories in life will be sure; our peace will flow to and through us
like a river; the love of God, that has no bounds, will fill our hearts and lives for
not only all of humanity but especially for God our Father. A thankful heart
attracts blessings. I like to get attached more to the Blesser then the blessings.
The blessings are temporary, but the Blesser is eternal! The miracles can be
taken for granted after time goes by, but He who grants the miracles remains
forever! A thankful heart is not captivated by mean-spirited people. A thankful
heart shields you from covetousness. A thankful heart will never be forgotten by
God. It is the grounds of a fruitful life, a prosperous life, a loving, kind, and
gentle life. Your miracle begins the moment you touch Jesus, and the Bible
teaches us we can touch Jesus by giving Him thanks. A thankful heart
automatically puts everything in proper perspective in our lives.
"Oh give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good: for His mercy endureth
for ever!" (Psalms 107:1). Almighty God is good! He is beautiful, bountiful,
cheerful, and sets us at ease when we come in contact with Him. He is gracious
and does everything with a merry and cheerful heart. He is a pleasure to
approach with our prayers. He told us to come to Him, for He will in no wise
cast us out! He is our burden-bearer, so we can cast all our cares upon Him. Yes,
He cares for you!!
If I was in need today, the first thing I would do is to come to the Lord
with a thankful heart: thankful that He is gracious and understanding of my
situation, and loving enough to minister what is right. Learn to thank Him for
hearing you. He said if we come to Him with the right attitude, He will hearken
to our prayers. That means He will not only hear us, but will do something about
it, too! You will not lack any good thing if you have a thankful heart.
I invite you to our church. Our schedule of services is Sunday at 10 am
and 7 pm, and Wednesday at 7:30 pm. May God bless you and your family this
Thanksgiving!
Sincerely,

Rev. Daniel Bossidy