Thanksgiving, Part 2

22 Nov

Thanksgiving, Part 2

The holiday we call Thanksgiving was proclaimed a national holiday by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863. It is said to have begun in 1621 when the Pilgrims enjoyed a harvest of vegetables after a drought left them in doubt of food for the winter. They had fasted and prayed for rain during the summer and God granted their request. The harvest was celebrated by a feast which included the Indians who had taught the Pilgrims to grow corn, beans, and pumpkins. Although many think it is a day to thank each other, Thanksgiving is a day that was originally set aside to thank God for His bountiful provision and protection to our nation.

As Christians, we are called to thank God for everything, not just the good stuff and the good times. Thanking God, even in difficult times, keeps us focused on the great and precious promises of God’s Word, like “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Heb. 13:5). For example, when Dan was diagnosed with his first cancer in 2006, a woman we knew from church loudly announced to us that God had left her entirely alone during her Chemotherapy. But as He promised, He had been there the entire time. Because she refused to recognize His presence and to thank Him, she missed the blessing of His fulfilled promise.

Two years ago I fell and broke my wrist, both bones. As Dan was coming down the hall to see what had happened, my first words were, “Ice. I need ice.” While I waited, I thanked God for the fall that had placed me in pain and the next thought came out of that prayer. As Dan approached me with the ice pack, I said, “We need to go to the emergency room. I wonder what divine appointment God has for us today?” Sure enough, the daughter of the elderly lady in the bed next to me had just been notified that her mother appeared to have leukemia and would be transported to a larger hospital in Reno for further testing. We were able to pray with them and encourage this sister in the Lord and her mother while I waited for my XRay and splint.

Always remember that when Satan’s fiery darts go through God’s hedge of protection they become tools in the hand of God, tools to grow our faith, bring us closer to Him, and to work His divine will in us. Most of the time we don’t know why trials happen, but we do know that we are supposed to thank Him, no matter what, according to 1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18.

Three things happen when we thank Him:

God is glorified when we obey Him, and isn’t God’s glory what we live for?
Our faith grows. Every time we thank Him, He reveals a little more of Himself in us and to us.
Others are blessed and encouraged by our testimony of belief in the middle of sometimes humanly horrendous circumstances.

Are you weary and heavy-laden, going through a painful trial? Do you know Jesus well enough to pray to Him? The Bible tells us that we have to simply “believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shall be saved” (Acts 16:31) in order to enter into a relationship with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. This Thanksgiving, let us thank God together for His wonderful love, mercy, and grace that has brought us forever into His presence and protection. Let us thank Him that everything He allows His children to experience works together for our good and to His glory. May we bring glory to Him today, and every day, as we seek to know Him better in the upcoming Holiday celebrations of Thanksgiving and Christmas.