THE TRUE SPIRIT OF THANKSGIVING

“Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands. Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing. Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him and bless his name. For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.” Psalm 100

On Thanksgiving Day, the President of the United States will call the people of this country to prayer. It is perhaps ironic that while our Constitution forbids the establishment of religion there are times when it appears perfectly acceptable for the nation's highest elected official to lead the people in prayer. This is especially apparent in the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks which inspired so much prayer in public places led by so many elected officials. When you think about it, Thanksgiving is unique among the nation's holidays in placing an act of prayer, front and center. To be sure, this message is not always communicated very clearly. 

It sometimes seems that Thanksgiving is our most self-congratulatory moment. As families gather around their tables filled with so many good things to eat, ¿Is the real purpose of this holiday to catalogue all our success, to list our achievements, to enjoy our good fortune that we happen to live in the richest and most powerful nation in the world?  ¿Or is there something deeper calling to us from within this nation's singular call to prayer? 

There was a woman who boarded a bus. Every seat was filled. She was tired and carried several packages. Noticing her dilemma, a certain man stood up and graciously offered his seat to the woman. The woman was so shocked by what the man did that she fainted. After she was revived, she looked up at the man who had relinquished his seat and said, "Thank you." When the man heard this he promptly fainted.

The point of this humorous story is that many people don't bother saying "thank-you" anymore. This is  sad because thankfulness is good for the soul.

The Bible teaches that a thankful attitude joins heaven and earth; whereas, an ungrateful attitude keeps heaven and earth, the spiritual and the material, separate. When we are thankful, we recognize that food, shelter, and all other necessities come to us because of the mercy of Almighty God. Thankfulness turns our hearts towards heaven. Thankfulness is one of the things that lifts us above the level of the beasts.

Many Americans think of Thanksgiving as a wonder full time to celebrate getting out of school for a long weekend and eating a big meal. Or, maybe they think it is the start of the Christmas holiday season. ¿What is the real meaning behind Thanksgiving?

Thanksgiving is supposed to be one of our main national holidays. A good question to ask is “¿Are we celebrating Thanksgiving the way that God wants us to celebrate it?” ¿Have we lost the emphasis of thanksgiving and shifted it to a gluttonous feast of food, drink and football games?  Many people today refer to this holiday as "turkey day" instead of Thanksgiving Day. Many people have eliminated the object of who we are to offer our thanks. We are just to be "thankful" we are told. ¿But to whom should our thanks be directed to? The object of our thanks for our many blessings should be directed to God. It should not just be a general "thanks." To whom, and for what are we thankful on Thanksgiving Day?

We can trace this historic American Christian tradition to the year 1623. After the harvest crops were gathered in November 1623, Governor William Bradford of the Pilgrim Colony, “Plymouth Plantation” in Plymouth, Massachusetts proclaimed: “All ye pilgrims with your wives and little ones, do gather at the Meeting House, on the hill… there to listen to the pastor, and render Thanksgiving to the Almighty God for all His blessings.”

This is the origin of our annual Thanksgiving Day celebration. The Congress of the United States has proclaimed National Days of Thanksgiving to God many times throughout the years. On November 1, 1777, by order of Congress, the first National Thanksgiving Proclamation was signed proclaiming the third Thursday of December as the official day of thanksgiving. On January 1, 1795, George Washington, proclaimed Thursday, the 19^th day of February, as the National Day of Thanksgiving. Many years later, on October 3, 1863, Abraham Lincoln proclaimed, by act of congress, an annual National Day of Thanksgiving on the last Thursday of November. 

This Thursday we will celebrate this national holiday, ¿But are we going to celebrate it in the right manner? We must not forget that the main purpose of this day is for prayer and thanksgiving, and not only feasting and fellowship. God is not opposed to our feasting and our gathering of friends and family to eat together, ¿But if our only prayer is to ask God to bless the food that we are going to eat, ¿Are we not forgetting the real meaning of this day? God delights in blessing us as His children. ¿However, do we, as His children delight in blessing Him with our prayers and thanks? ¿Dose our celebrations revolve more around the meal and the football games that follow, than around the discussion of the things we should be thankful for? Many are worshipping the idol of ball games on holidays instead of focusing on the true meaning of Thanksgiving. Let us ask God to forgive us and truly celebrate this day in real thanksgiving and prayer.

On this Thanksgiving Day we want to give thanks. On this Thanksgiving Day we want to join the material world to the spiritual. On this Thanksgiving Day we want to dedicate to God what has been given to us. ¿How do we go about doing this?

First of all, we should thank God for life. He has made us and formed us. Only in Him do we live and move and have our being. Only in Him do we have the ability to think and enjoy and respond and wonder. Only in Him can we jump and run and play and learn. Only in Him can we eat and sleep and love. So we thank God for life.

Second, we should thank God for health. Many of you have suffered health problems throughout this year. It seems that it is only when we face sickness that we appreciate health and strength.

Third, we should thank God for providing for our physical needs. Yes, some of us could have more things or better things; even so, we have food, clothes on our bodies, a roof over our heads, and a car in the garage. These are common material things, but they do not come by chance. We know they are gifts from the Giver above. We should remember that in many places around the world very few people dare to take these common blessings for granted.

Fourth, we should also thank God for our families. For some people, it is painful to remember family relationships broken by death or divorce. But even as we feel such grief, we can be thankful for those who uphold us and love us still. Our families are precious. Thanksgiving is a time for husbands to thank Almighty God for their wives, and for wives to thank God for their husbands; for parents and children to thank God for each other; for all of us to thanks God for the companionship of friends.
Fifth, and most important, we should thank God for grace and salvation. God has blessed us with every sort of spiritual blessing. He has taken us who were lost in sin and evil and renewed us to be like Jesus. He has removed from us the fear of judgment and everlasting hell fire.

There are times, of course, when we all are tempted to feel ungrateful. At such times it is good for you to contemplate the good things God has done for you. May I offer this suggestion: take time this week to write on a card small enough to fit into your wallet, 10 great things God has done for you. Then, whenever you are tempted to feel ungrateful, pull out that card and start thinking about the mercies you have written down. By thinking about God's past provision, you'll be encouraged to trust in His power to provide and protect in the present.

 A man who owned a small property wanted to sell it. Sending for a real estate agent, he asked him to write an advertisement describing the house and land. When the ad was ready, the agent took it to the owner and read it to him. "Read that again," said the owner.

 The agent read the description of the property once more. "I don't think I will sell it after all," said the owner. "I have been looking for a property like that all my life and I did not know that I owned it!"

 Count your blessings – yes, but start by asking God to open your eyes to see the many blessings and things God has given to you. That will change your entire perspective and enable you to praise and thank God always.