In defense of Thanksgiving


October 31st has come and gone..... everyone ate enough chocolate and candy to last them for a year and the kids (and adults) enjoyed dressing up in costumes, attending harvest festivals and trick-or-treating around the neighborhood. So now what? Well, according to retailers and stores around America, it's time to celebrate CHRISTMAS!! Wait, what? I feel like we skipped something here.On November 1st, stores are playing Christmas music, the Hallmark Channel has started their annual showing of Christmas movies and Christmas decorations are replacing the pumpkins and skeletons that once adorned store fronts and houses. Christmas Bazaars and Holiday Shows begin on the first Saturday after Halloween and everyone is ready to celebrate Christmas........... except me.

Now, don't get me wrong, I LOVE to celebrate Christmas!! It's a wonderful time to remember our Savior's birth and we all enjoy buying gifts for family and friends and spending time with loved ones. But all the commercialism of Christmas has nearly obliterated the recognition of THANKSGIVING, which is celebrated every 4th Thursday of November, thanks to then-President FDR, who declared Thanksgiving a national holiday on November 26, 1941.

In school, we all learn about the Pilgrims and the Native Americans, and while there may be controversy (as there seems to be in many things), I think it is good to have a day set aside to give thanks and be reminded of all that we have been blessed with.

Too often (myself included) we complain about what we don't have instead of being grateful for what we do have. I have family and friends who love me and care about me. I have food to eat for 3 meals each day (and snacks in between). I have a house with a roof over my head, clothes to wear in all of the different seasons, a bed to sleep in, two children to teach and train up in the ways of the Lord, a wonderful husband who works hard to provide for us. I am blessed to be a part of God's wonderful ministry through the work of Mission Aviation Fellowship, I am blessed to be a part of a great church family......... my list could go on and on.

This year, let's celebrate Christmas in December and enjoy giving thanks in November. I try to be thankful everyday for the blessings that God has bestowed upon me (of which there are many), but for 30 days in November, I want to focus on being thankful. "O give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; for His lovingkindness is everlasting."~ 1 Chronicles 16:34


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