Thanksgiving has been celebrated on many different dates since its inception in 1621. Even before this date there were festive celebrations on various dates by the Spanish Colony in Florida. The day has a special meaning of thanks given to God for the bounties he has given all of us and those before us. It was a time of feasting or fasting for the Pilgrims and the Indians for a successful harvest.
The date of the fourth Thursday in November came to be when President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared this date as an official holiday on December 26, 1941. The reason for this date was that businesses would have more shopping days for their Christmas season.
There are many reasons we celebrate this special holiday but I am afraid that many of us are allowing it to take a back seat to Christmas and we are missing the true blessing of giving thanks to our Lord and Savior for all that He has allowed us to have.
In our modern day and time why do we celebrate Thanksgiving? Are we truly grateful for what the Lord has allowed us to accomplish throughout the year or is it just a time of eating and watching football? I can remember times when I was a young boy and family came together to celebrate a time of togetherness with the enjoyment of seeing and being with each other. It was a time that all of us were grateful for the feast of food and drink that had been prepared but mostly it was a time of renewal for family and friends we hadn’t seen for a while. I also have to say it was a day that we spent eating, talking, playing games, but most of all recognizing the fact that we were all blessed because of the Lord.
I guess I remember these times because television was just coming in and had little or no significance in everyday life. There was no social media, no big time sports activities other than the ones played among family. It was a time for family and friends.
We are told in Psalm 100:4; “Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to Him; Bless His name!” This is how we should celebrate Thanksgiving!
It has become a sad day for many because we have placed the Lord on the back burner and given into the worldly desires of recreation and other activities. We may say a quick prayer to try and cover ourselves with the Lord but do we truly have a Thanksgiving spirit?
Just as the Pilgrims and Indians celebrated a bountiful harvest in 1621 they knew where their blessings came from. Do we still have that spirit today? Do we celebrate Thanksgiving with family and friends or do we just think of it as another day of life and forget that we wouldn’t be here without the blessings of the Lord God!
This year, how will you celebrate Thanksgiving?
