Thanksgiving Bible Study:
Becoming A Living Sacrifice

But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. ~ John 4:23 (NLT)

Click here for a Thanksgiving Bible Study for children.

In this Thanksgiving Bible study, we are going to take the idea of showing gratitude towards God to a different level.  We will look at what God really wants from us as tokens of our thankfulness, and how to give Him the true worship that He deserves.  

I would like for you to begin this Bible Study by watching a short compilation music video that I designed especially for this study.  I pray that it challenges you to take your own worship of the Lord to the next level.

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Due to the length of this Thanksgiving Bible Study, it has been broken into 3 lessons.  Don't feel obligated to complete all 3 at once.  Do them at your own pace.

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Thanksgiving Bible Study Lesson 1:  What is True Worship?

Why is God looking for people who will worship Him with their spirits? Because your spirit is the part of you that stands, when every other part of you has fallen.

When you truly give your spirit over to God, He has all that He needs to transform the rest of you.

Let me give you a personal example.

We all go through trials.  A while back I was going through one of my own.

I had been sick for a few years, and, in the physical realm, I was not getting better, but worse.  I was losing my job for the fifth time in 5 years due to this health battle.  And, to top it all off, our finances, in the physical realm, were spiraling downwards fast.   

I had been praying for months for God to step in and do His Superman thing , but things continued to get worse on all fronts.

One day, I was in my living room, and just felt like Satan was laughing at me.  "All of this praying, and believing, and look at you.  God's not coming to save you this time.  Things are just gonna keep getting worse and worse!"

I'm going to be totally real with you.  

Physically, I was weak.  

Mentally, I could feel depression starting to creep up on me, and I was getting tired of fighting it off.

I had nothing left.

But, out of somewhere deep inside of me, I heard myself begin to say "I'm still standing.  And He's still worthy!"  It just kept coming out of my mouth.  "I'm still standing.  And He's still WORTHY!"

Next thing I knew, I was yelling it!  "He's still WORTHY!"  Even if He never healed me and we ended up bankrupt, He's still WORTHY!  And I am going to stand for Him!  

That was not a decision that I could make with my body.  And my mind  was scared that my husband would hear me, and think I had finally flipped. But, I began to worship God with my spirit.  

It was all that I had left.  And, thankfully, it was all that I needed.

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Thanksgiving Bible Study Lesson 2:  Where Does True Worship Come From?

Worship and praise are very different.  Praise is thanking God for something that He has done.  Worship is standing in awe of Him, and thanking Him for who He is.  

Worship flows out of an intimate relationship with the Lord.  It is a spiritual response to your love and adoration for Him.  And, it is what deepens the intimate love affair that the two of you share.

I love the way that the Amplified Bible describes loving the Lord in Mark 12:30.  We are to love Him with our entire being.  

Here is the breakdown.

And you shall love the Lord your God:

1. Out of, and with your whole heart. 
2. Out of, and with all your soul  - Your Life.
3. Out of, and with all your mind - With your faculty of thought and your moral understanding.
4. Out of, and with all your strength. 

Jesus tells us that "This is the first and principal commandment" (Mark 12:30 AMP).  

It is so key to grasp that God's first request is not that you honor and respect Him.  It is not even that you obey Him.  It is that you love Him. This reveals His true desire towards us.  To love and be loved.

In worldly relationships, we are quick to say that someone who is only interested in what they can get from the other person is not acting out of love for that person, but out of their love for themselves.  The same is true in your spiritual relationship with God.

If you are only interested in what you can get from the Lord, that is not really loving Him.  When you really love someone, it is not just for what they can do for you.  It is for who they are.  

That is the heart of where true worship comes from.  Truly loving God with everything that you are.
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Thanksgiving Bible Study Lesson 3:  The Ultimate Sacrifice 

Greater love hath no man than this,
that a man lay down his life for his friend(s).
- John 15:13

This scripture was written in reference to Jesus' laying down His life for you.




But, if you are a friend of God, you can also read it another way.

Do you love God enough to give Him your most prized possession - Your Life?  

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all He has done for you.
Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind He will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship Him. - Romans 12:1 (AMP)

The ultimate sign of a thankful heart, is offering your life up to the Lord as a living sacrifice, just as Jesus offered His own life up for you.  

How do you do that?

Become a Willing Instrument for God's Use:

• Spend time in prayer every day, seeking God's will for your life.


• Commit your life to Him anew each and every morning.


• Ask Him to order your steps throughout the day.  


• Ask God to show you people that He needs you to bless that day, and how He would like you to help them.


• Slow down and listen to His answers, and where He is guiding your life.


• Study God's Word regularly.


• While you are waiting to hear from God today, don't forget about what He has already said to you through the scriptures.


• If you open yourself up to Him, He will begin revealing special things in His Word that will help you right where you are.


• Consult God on all of your major decisions.


• If your life truly belongs to Him, He should be running it!


• He will lead you if you let Him.


• His plans always work out better in the long run anyways!


• Don't be afraid to act on His leadings.


• Sometimes we are afraid that we are not really hearing God, so we never step out on what He is telling us to do.


• Step Out On Faith!  Even if you did not hear Him properly, because you did it in faith, God will still protect you.  He knows that your heart was seeking Him!

Thanksgiving Bible Study Reflection Questions: What do you think the main difference is between praising God and worshiping Him? How often do you have your own praise and worship time outside of church? Have you ever fallen into the trap of only seeking God when you need something from Him?  If so, how can you combat that in the future? Which of the "Becoming a Willing Instrument for God's Use" tips do you think you could improve on?  Why?

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