Thank You

Posted: November 22nd, 2011   Category: Christianity, Common Sense

Almost five months after the historic Battle of Gettysburg [in 1863], these words were recorded; “When I left Springfield, I asked the people to pray for me. I was not a Christian. When I buried my son, the severest trial of my life, I was not a Christian. But when I went to Gettysburg and saw the graves of [60] thousands of our soldiers, I then and there consecrated myself to Christ.” These are the words of Abraham Lincoln, our President who finally [that same year] set aside the fourth Thursday in November as our national day of thanks.  It is most gratifying to see and hear the most powerful man in our nation, humble himself before God.  It wasn’t until 1941 that our congress permanently established Thanksgiving as an annual American holiday. Yes, 70 years ago our Congress appears to have in fact, recognized God. Yes, it’s also true that giving thanks to the Lord for a bountiful harvest did begin many years before even our original colonies (Virginia, 1607 & Massachusetts, 1621) were being established.  Thanking God for their “new world”, was a part of their voyages and their lives. In the case of these settlers and Pilgrims, loving their neighbors (our native Americans) and inviting them to the feast was evidence of both their Christianity and their appreciation for having good Samaritans as neighbors. Yes, Thanksgiving is more than 2 days of time off, more than a feast of thanks, it is the day when many of our founding fathers, as Christians, chose to add their own day to God’s biblically ordained [Old Testament] festivities of thanks. Thanksgiving was never intended to replace any holy days, it was and is a reminder that everything we have, however little or great comes to us from God.

Our hard work means nothing without the God given soils, seeds, sun and water which we borrow daily to produce our food.  While the gifts of nature are ours to enjoy during our stay we need to be; “… always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 5:20 NIV). On this day I would like to add my humble thanks to those of you who’ve taken the time out of your busy schedules over the past year, to dwell in and share in God’s Word with us.  The Lord, although often absent from our minds is always present in our hearts and for this dear Lord we also thank you. Because of your grace, we have been able to proclaim for hundreds of years, a Happy Thanks-giving, for what you’ve given us and for what you’ve promised to those who love you and call you “Father”.

JC Calkins with COMMON SENSE 4 UNCOMMON PEOPLE

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