Ephesians 5:18-20

“Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but be filled with the Spirit…giving thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”  vss. 18, 20

One of the options available to us as we consider how to use our hours in these troubled times is drinking. In that choice we have an advantage over the Ephesians. They seem to have had access only to wine, while we have a wide array of alcoholic beverages to choose from, and of course we still have wine. But Paul doesn’t consider drunkenness to be a wise choice, and he recommends the Spirit instead of spirits. And then after advising the Ephesians to engage in singing hymns and spiritual songs, he blows our minds. He tells them and us to give thanks to God for everything at all times, and to do it in the name of Jesus. If we were to take Paul’s words to heart, remembering that he writes them from a jail cell, we would not let external circumstances dictate the mood of our days. Instead, each day we would awaken with a prayer of thanksgiving on our lips and then receive every minute of that day as a gift, giving thanks for everything that comes our way. If you’ve never tried living in a Spirit of thanksgiving all day, every day, it wouldn’t hurt to try. It might even make that glass of wine you have in the evening all the sweeter!

Thought for the Day: What could a Spirit of Thanksgiving do for my soul?