Thanksgiving. A time set aside – set aside – for giving thanks to our Creator for the many benefits He gives to us with an open hand. As lovely as Christmas is, it isn’t a time for Christmas yet. Rather, Thanksgiving is a special, precious time of thinking, therefore seeing, our blessings.

The first time our nation celebrated this special day was in 1621, when people in Massachusetts celebrated with a feast of thanks in the New World. George Washington recalled their gratitude by issuing a proclamation of Thanksgiving in 1789. John Adams and James Madison followed suit. Then came the Civil War. There doesn’t seem to be much of anything to be grateful for in a war. Yet Abraham Lincoln designated thanksgiving to be given in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea, and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next as a Day of Thanksgiving and Prayer to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens. Thanksgiving has been celebrated in the United States ever since. Or has it?

We have a day we call Thanksgiving. Many people look forward to a feast and football game. But Thanksgiving without true thanks is pretty thin, don’t you agree? With the challenges our nation has faced for a good decade – okay –  a century or more, we would do well to read about the struggles and triumphs of real people, the sacrifices and treasures discovered in the midst of those sacrifices, and the amazing mercy and provision of God through it all. We might even go waaay back and consider what Israel faced during the days of Jeremiah. In fact, to borrow his prayer:

I know, O Lord, that a man’s life is not his own; it is not for man to direct his steps. Correct me, Lord, but only with justice – not in Your anger, lest You reduce me to nothing.

And then, yes then, we might consider our own lives – the days we breathe in and out from day 1 until now – and consider the near misses, lessons learned, and certainly the blessings over them all. And only then we might begin to understand the mercy of God is beyond description. And our carelessness of thought and appreciation could be wearing a bit thin for Him. And upon reflection, repentance clears a beautiful path to giving thanks.

Sources: https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-resources/spotlight-primary-source/thanksgiving-proclamation-1863; Jeremiah 10:23-24; Image: pexels-rdne-5847888-scaled.jpg