As we enter into this season of thanksgiving, let’s look to scripture for some inspiration. Here are some questions put together by Dr. Doug Mendenhall, a professor at Abilene Christian University to encourage you to dive into Biblical incidents of praise and thanksgiving.
- Who was thankful for the proper interpretation of a royal dream?
- In two big crowds, who said prayers of thanks for some loaves of bread and a couple of fish?
- Who will be thankful that you gave him back that cloak you borrowed before the sun went down?
- Who was thankful that he could do more speaking in tongues than an entire church?
- Who was specifically charged to stand up every morning and every evening and say thanks to God?
- Who thanked God that he was better than other people?
- Who celebrated a new city wall by having two choirs sing on top of it, on opposite sides?
- Who gets out of bed at midnight just to thank God for his righteous laws?
- Who prayed three times a day on his knees? Upstairs. Facing Jerusalem.
- Who thanked God for the new baby held by Joseph and Mary, then told everyone in the building about him, too?
- Whose final prayer to God was effective in countering a prayer of thankfulness to the fish god, Dagon?
- When Jesus healed 10 men of their leprosy, who told him thanks?
- At a table filled with 13 men, who said special prayers of thanks for the bread and then for the wine?
- Among 276 people, who broke a 14-day fast with a prayer of thanks for the bread?
- Who thanked God for the faith of Roman Christians – which was being talked about around the world?
- Who (or what) causes 24 elders to fall down every time they give thanks?
- Whose thanksgiving was so pleasing that God responded with a rainbow?
- Who neither glorifies God nor gives thanks to him?
- Who was so thankful for her baby boy that she sent him to live with the Lord?
- Who was resurrected because his friend offered a prayer of thanks to God?
Need a little help? Here in alphabetical order are the 20 possible answers: Anna, Daniel (twice), David, Fools, Four creatures, Hannah, Jesus (twice), Lazarus, Levites, Nehemiah, Noah, Paul in Corinthians, Paul in Romans, Paul in a boat, Pharisee, Poor neighbor, Samaritan, Samson.