Thanksgiving. The giving of thanks. We see it is a time to gather with family and friends – to feast and enjoy one another. Perhaps watch football. Certainly eat turkey and all the fixings. We might gather for a prayer over the meal before we dig in. Maybe not. Either way, do we really give thanks?
So many in our country are unsatisfied, angry, judgmental, and unforgiving. The notions upon which this country was founded are remarkable; and, yet, people are burning flags and acting in ways which are disrespectful in so many ways. Do we ever really stop and realize how fortunate we are—and all we have to be thankful for?
The first Thanksgiving occurred in 1621. It was a united three day feast in which pilgrims celebrated with their Native American friends. Roughly half of the people on the Mayflower died on the journey and before the first spring in the New World.
Had it not been for the hospitality and guidance of Native Americans, many more would surely have died. After their first harvest, they celebrated what has come to be considered the first Thanksgiving. These were survivors of tremendous hardships, death, disease, and starvation. They were thankful, I presume, to be alive—and commencing a new life in a new world, treacherous though it was.
In the early 1800s, several states started creating days for Thanksgiving. Ironically, it was President Lincoln, in the height of the Civil War, who in 1863, created a national day known as Thanksgiving. It was on the last Thursday in November.
The nation was fighting against itself. It was a horrific time. And President Lincoln said it was a time to ask God to “commend to his tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife” and “to heal the wounds of the nation.” Many of the things that plague our nation today pale in comparison to the trials of the pilgrims, or the mounting death toll of the Civil War—and, in fact, many people conjure up things to be angry or unhappy about. We have much to be thankful for—in fact, everything.
Implicit in Abraham Lincoln’s message was God. And from God we have a message. In 1st Thessalonians 5:18, we are implored to “give thanks in all circumstances.” It did not say wait until things are perfect in our eyes, not when we have the right job, have no debt, have the perfect marriage, or perfect health. We are to be thankful in ALL circumstances.
The Pilgrims celebrated survival and a new harvest. Abraham Lincoln had his country use the day as a time to think of those suffering and those who had lost someone in war. Rather than grumble, rant and rave, put others down, or decry our circumstances, I hope we will all take a moment to give thanks. We have so much to be thankful for. Life. Liberty. This glorious country. A loving God. Let us use this time for its intended purpose.
