Thanksgiving Day

Today's entry is an encore from last Thanksgiving:

Today is Thanksgiving Day in the United States.

In our nation's history, we look back to the 1620s in New England for the custom of setting aside a day for recognizing the blessings which God has given to us and to thank Him accordingly. Those festivals of thanks were typically preceded by days of fasting and humbling to seek God's favor and direction in difficult circumstances. Over the years, there were periodic celebrations of Thanksgiving, such as occurred in 1789 during the first year of George Washington's Presidency under our current Constitution. (The text of Washington's 1789 Thanksgiving proclamation can be found at: http://www.leaderu.com/humanities/washington-thanksgiving.html)

The concept of giving thanks to God is found throughout the Bible. (The Psalms are filled with praises of thanks to God). There is a dual sense to these biblical references to thankfulness. One sense is that of physical provision. We do know that all good gifts come to us from God. (See James 1:17). It is our duty to recognize that we are not the ultimate source of our physical well-being but God Himself. The second sense is that of the spiritual dimension. It is the recognition that God has done more than keep us warm and well-fed. For those who have faith in Christ, we are called to be those who are:

joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves. Colossians 1:11-13 NIV

In the hustle and bustle of this day, please take the time to think about the blessings which you have received from God and be thankful for them. While this day is certainly a great time to express our gratitude to God, the Christian is called to show this attitude every day. It should be a part of our thinking and result in a life of gratitude. It must be a part of our life of prayer.

Thank you for reading this blog and being a part of the School of the Solitary Place.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. Colossians 4:2 NIV