What should be the focus of Christians on Thanksgiving?

Response

The initial Thanksgiving celebration was conducted by the Pilgrim settlers in Massachusetts during their second winter in America in December 1621. The harsh conditions of the first winter claimed the lives of 44 of the original 102 colonists. At one point, their daily food ration was reduced to five kernels of corn each. However, their situation improved when an unexpected trading vessel arrived, exchanging beaver pelts for grain, meeting their critical needs. The following summer’s harvest brought hope, leading Governor William Bradford to declare December 13, 1621, as a day of feasting and prayer to express the colonists’ gratitude for their survival.

These Pilgrims, who sought religious freedom and opportunities in America, expressed their thanks to God for His provision. They were grateful for finding 20 acres of cleared land, the absence of hostile Native Americans in the area, their newfound religious freedom, and God’s gift of an interpreter in Squanto. The celebration included feasting, games with the colonists and over 80 Native Americans (who contributed wild turkeys and venison to the feast), as well as prayers, sermons, and songs of praise. The festivities lasted for three days.

Since then, Thanksgiving has been commemorated as a day to express gratitude to God for His abundant provision. President Abraham Lincoln officially designated the last Thursday of November in 1863 as “a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father.” In 1941, Congress decreed that starting from that year, Thanksgiving Day would be observed on the fourth Thursday of November as a legal holiday.

In Scripture, we find numerous references to the importance of thanksgiving, emphasizing the act of giving thanks nearly.From cover to cover, individuals offered sacrifices out of gratitude in the book of Genesis. The Israelites sang a song of thanksgiving as they were delivered from Pharaoh’s army after the crossing of the Red Sea (Exodus 15). Later, the Mosaic Law set aside three times each year when the Israelites were to gather together. All three of these occasions [Unleavened Bread (also known as the Feast of the Passover) (Exodus 12:15-20), Harvest or Pentecost (Leviticus 23:15-21), and the Feast of Ingathering or Tabernacles (Leviticus 23:33-36)] involved remembering God’s provision and grace. Harvest and Tabernacles were specifically related to God’s provision in the harvest of various fruit trees and crops. The book of Psalms is filled with songs of thanksgiving, both for God’s grace to the Israelite people as a whole through His mighty deeds, as well as for His individual graces to each of us.

In the New Testament, there are repeated admonitions to give thanks to God. Thanksgiving should always be a part of our prayers. Some of the most memorable passages on giving thanks include the following:

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18;NKJV).

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God” «Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. », (Philippians 4:6, NKJV).

“Therefore I exhort first of all that su

Applications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks should be made for all men” «I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; », (1 Timothy 2:1, NKJV).

Of all of God’s gifts, the greatest one He has given is the gift of His Son, Jesus Christ. On the cross of Calvary, Jesus paid our sin debt, so a holy and just Judge could forgive us our sins and give us eternal life as a free gift. This gift is available to those who will call on Christ to save them from their sin in simple but sincere faith (John 3:16;Romans 3:19-26;Romans 6:23;Romans 10:13;Ephesians 2:8-10). For this gift of His Son, the gift which meets our greatest need, the apostle Paul says, “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!” «Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.», (2 Corinthians 9:15).

We, like the Pilgrims, have a choice. In life there will always be those things that we can complain about (the Pilgrims had lost many loved ones), but there will also be much to be thankful for. As our society becomes increasingly secular, the actual “giving of thanks to God” during our annual Thanksgiving holiday is being overlooked, leaving only the feasting. May God grant that He may find us grateful every day for all of His gifts, spiritual and material. God is good, and every good gift comes from Him «Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. », (James 1:17). For those who know Christ, God also works everything together for good, even

These are not necessarily the things we would consider good (Romans 8:28-30). May He find us as His grateful children.