Thankfulness to God

Thankfulness to God taken from Nov. 3, 2016 post

During Thanksgiving week, I began contemplating areas of my life and experience for which I am deeply thankful to God. I have identified dominant spheres in my life that fall into this category, and I want to share them with you, and especially thank God for them.

First and foremost, and the one reality without which, I could never hope to please God, is the continuous presence, the power and potential of the crimson stream of holy blood that Christ vicariously spilled at the cross. It speaks better things than the blood of Abel! It paid the horrible price for my salvation. It provides a sacred influence that colors all my fleshly attempts to serve the Lord Jesus Christ. It sustains me when I am without strength or resolve to remain engaged or to finish a formidable task. It undergirds all my frail efforts to achieve holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.

These divine intrusions have poignantly formed a particular edge in my point of view. And it is because of these seasoned realities that I love to bask in the effulgent glow reflected from many of the old hymns. Songs like “There’s Power in the Blood,” or “I See a Crimson Stream of Blood,” or “There is a Fountain Filled with Blood,” and there are others, all of them causing me pause and a time of sacred rejoicing in the sacrificial provision that our Lord made for us all. None of this is available on “Black Friday”; it cannot be bought or sold!

The next most significant reality in my life is the comfort and spiritual counsel that I receive from my sweet wife, Diane. In fact, in a couple weeks we will celebrate 53 years of marriage [58 yrs in 2021!]. WOW, that sounds like a long time (and I guess it is), but it has all passed as a vapor in the night! Nevertheless, I thank God for this very special and dedicated woman, who was chosen by the Lord and given the task to come along side of me, and to face with me the challenges of life because of this unique ministry. She is my most faithful, determined, and dearest friend. In this prioritized list of exceptional people, I must thank God for my children—all grown, with families of their own—but they have been, and still are, frequent causes of thanksgiving. These four offspring are comprised of a daughter and three sons (and now grandchildren & great-grandchildren); most all are faithful disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Finally, I am thankful for the excitement and difficulty posed by the past years of ministry. It was during this time (from August 1989 until now) that God gave to me the penetrating and tearful invitation to develop the CTF ministry. I am overwhelmingly thankful to the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ for His faithful enablement…and I thank all our faithful partners for their prayer and finance (Isaiah 40:28-31).

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Looking Back

By Matt Miles • March 19, 2026

There are moments in life that we experience the Lord’s Providence, which is the continual guiding and caring of us for His purposes. We may go though trials and suffering now to refine our faith in preparation for eternity. Other times we may see it for the here and now, with the aligning of plans for His purpose in our life, maybe with the opening or closing of a door. Many times we see Providence only in hindsight, looking back on life and seeing His hand working, molding and inspiring us for His plans and to His glory. I can see the Lord’s Providence at many times over the course of my life. Early in my grade school years I developed a love for building models I was recently reminded, along with my father, that we built a train set together in our basement. Following that, I began to build model cars and airplanes. I now know that love of building, tinkering and problem solving was Providence preparing me for this ministry. The Lord taught me early on how to stay focused and pay attention to detail. What I thought was only a hobby at the time is now something I must use on a regular basis in things such as fossil restoration, building crates, trailer and vehicle maintenance for our mobile museum. Later in high school, while active in church, the Lord called me to serve our children’s church ministry. I began to help teach others about Jesus. It seemed insignificant at the time. I remember helping in lesson times and the puppet ministry. I even was cast as “Pastor Rufus” in one of our ongoing puppet skits. My opportunities to share Christ and be an example to those younger than I was tremendous. Again through His Providence, the Lord was guiding me and calling me to ministry. He developed in me the love of teaching His Word to others, priceless to me today. Then in college Providence brought Theresa and I together. The Lord knew exactly who I needed to be my bride for life. She is strong in my weakness and more Christ-like than anyone I know. She is the perfect helpmate and partner for me in ministry as well, which has so far been 34 years, to be exact. Many times the Lord has used her discernment to direct me through a situation that I did not see correctly. I am thankful every day for Providence that brought us together in life and eternal work. As I look back on my life, there are more Providential moments than I have space to write. Most of those times have directly guided me to this specific ministry and my call to preach and teach His Word. Looking back on life and identifying those moments of Providence from the Lord is humbling and awe-inspiring. Please take a moment to remember your own moments when Providence has been evident in your life. This ministry is about identifying Providence from the beginning. His plan from the start is us spending eternity in His presence. Our sin messed some things up, but not His plan. He always has and always will know exactly how to guide and care for us so that we bring Him the glory, now and eternally. There is not a month that goes by that we here at CTF don’t praise the Lord for His Providence through you, our supporters and sustainers. Join with me in thanks for His Providence each day, guiding as only our Creator and Savior could do. Psalms 31:3-5 Blessings.