Thanksgiving

Origin

Since we are in the midst of the Thanksgiving holiday season, this blog post gives homage to this season. Considering Thanksgiving’s historical backdrop, we certainly could take issue with its origins as they relate to the founding of our country. These inauspicious beginnings were not rooted in humility, brotherhood, love of your fellow man or uplifting the native people of this land. History chronicles the travesties visited upon this country’s native people as a direct result of the inaugural Thanksgiving meal – death, destruction and almost certain distinction at the hand of the founders. Our ancestors were enslaved at the hands of these same men and institutions with no regard for their humanity, culture, gifts and graces. The vestiges of these transgressions, reflected in current societal ills, remain a clear and prevalent threat to our progress and ultimate survival. Through God’s grace, we who are descendants of the Native and Afrikan nations continue to transform what was meant for evil into productive, sustainable survival and goodness. With the countless pitfalls, we not only survived, our faith that we will flourish endures. Reflecting on these struggles, I am reminded of Genesis 50:20 which tells us that what man intended for harm, God transformed for good. In that same vein, let us take this opportunity to use the Thanksgiving season for good, thanking God for His goodness in bringing us such a long way, His hope in us and His blessings in giving us the resilience to stay the course and prosper. Most of all we must thank Him just for being God.

Praise

Thanking God and praising His name are some of the ways in which we can honor Him. I find joy in praising Him through song. Let’s look at a few songs that clearly have an impactful, spirited focus on thanks and praise.

• Walter Hawkins & The Love Center Choir’s classic, Thank You, covers a wide range of thanks and adulation in the song’s rousing chorus: Thank you for holding me (Thank you for power); Thank you for loving me (Thank you for protection); Thank you for keeping me (Every hour); Thank you leading me (I want to thank you for your love); Thank you for guiding me (Thank you for power); Thank you for protecting me (Thank you for protection); Thank you for loving me Jesus (Every Hour).

• Hezekiah Walker speaks of his deep gratitude in his celebrated song, Grateful, with hints of the relationship that we should strive for with our Creator: I am grateful for the things that You have done; Yes I am grateful for the victories we've won; I could go on and on and on about Your works; Because I'm grateful, grateful so grateful just to praise you, Lord.

• The Kurt Carr Singers’ For Every Mountain opens with their humble acknowledgement of thanks and praise for God’s endless blessings and mercy: I've got so much to thank God for; So many wonderful blessings and so many open doors; A brand new mercy along with each new day; That's why I praise You; And for this I give You praise.

• In Oh Give Thanks, Dr. Judith Christie McAllister sings of the Lord’s goodness and worth: Oh, give thanks unto the Lord; For He is good, yes He is good; For He is worthy, worthy; For He is good, yes He is good.

• Youthful Praise expresses their many thanks, faith and the awesomeness of God in, I Wanna Say Thank You: Thank you for all that you've done thus far; Thank you for being the God that you are; Thank you for food on my table I know that You’re able, I wanna say thank you.

• In his prolific words of reverence, J. Moss professes, We Must Praise: Oh Hallelujah; Oh glory; Oh holy of holies; Oh bread of life God; Oh meat of hunger Lord; Water of thirst Lord; We magnify you; We thank You for what You've done God; What You’re doing God and what You're gonna do; Oh... No matter who or what we are, we must praise.

These are just a sample of the songs and lyrics that dropped in my spirit. Whether the lyrics listed above represent the main verse of the song or the chorus they are all powerful praises of thanks. Countless other songs that are just as spirit filled are available for our listening, singing and praising pleasure. Surely, you enjoy your own personal praise playlist that encourages you to give thanks. I invite you to share your favorites below in the comments section.

Gratitude

I was asked to consider the question, what is gratitude and what does it do? Gratitude is something that must be given expression to exist. Basically, it is defined as “the quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.” This suggests that gratitude reveals itself through our ability to express appreciation. Embracing a spirit of gratitude, we gain transformative perspective that profoundly changes our interpretations and interactions with the world. Challenges are seen through a completely different lens, one that directs the viewer to manageable solutions rather than anxiety, fear and disappointment.

We truly do have so much to thank God for especially the mountains He has brought us over and the tribulations from which we have been delivered. Challenges that we face are not meant to discourage us. They are for our refinement and, with His help, we should use these experiences to transform us into who we were meant to be according to His perfect plan. Songs of thanks and praise remind us that He is right there with us through it all. God did not promise us that as Christians, we will have a carefree life. On the contrary. His promise confirms that we will confront tribulation in the world, but God has overcome the world. We should express our gratitude for the awesome power and authority that he wields over our lives, the wisdom that he dispenses with His mighty hand and the glory of His presence.

While we praise God for His goodness and what he has done for us, let us not forget that we should praise God just for being God. Our relationship with God should never be based on what he has done, is doing and will do for us. This relationship must be anchored in the unfathomable fact that he is God and God alone. Because of Him and only Him we live; we are who we are and all that we ever will be. Because of His love for us, we undeservedly receive His grace and mercy. As the songstress so eloquently sings, for this we give Him praise.

Personal

I try to start each day giving God thanks and expressing my gratitude for the gift of a new day. Before going to bed, I again thank and praise God for His goodness in making it through another day. Does this happen every day? No, it does not. I continue to work on making a daily commitment to commune with God at the beginning and end of my day. My challenge has always been giving myself permission to relinquish control. There have been too many times when the events of the day or the uncertainties of tomorrow loom large over my consciousness. In those moments, I tend to dissect the issues at hand instead of giving it over to God. The good news is I am not as obsessive as in the past, which is encouraging and lets me know that with Him I can do this! My testimony is that God continues to be so patient with me as I move from dependence on myself to total dependence on Him. For His grace even in this, I am more than thankful. What I am convinced of is that when I begin and end my day with the spirit and energy of gratitude, I usually am not overwhelmed by challenges and function within a much larger framework of perspective. Generally, issues are reduced to their rightful, realistic significance. The things that did work, are working or can work become more powerful that those that did not work, are not working or will not work. Moving forward with a renewed awareness, I am able to rest.

Reaping

This also is the season of reaping. In order to reap, we must sow. Whether we realize it or not, we are sowing seeds through our thoughts, actions and inactions. What kind of seeds have you sown? Are you looking forward to your harvest, or are you anticipating reaping the harvest with a measure of trepidation? Know that it is never too late to sow a good deed, to share God’s word, to pray fervently or to share God given gifts for His glory. In your prayer time, ask the Holy Spirit to lead you to those who are in need during this season and sow that seed with gladness and thanksgiving. In reality during this season, we do not have to pray long or hard for persons to help. They are often with us or near us in our daily journey. Perhaps you know someone who is isolated and would appreciate hearing a friendly voice. Give that person a call. Especially during this pandemic, we must find ways to help those who are less fortunate and offer up our thanks for being able to do so. Actually, when we are in the spirit of gratitude, we are in the flow of sharing, giving and receiving to bless again. We become active participants in the reciprocity of sowing and reaping, which is a continuous cycle. Also, if you are the one who is in need, open up and invite someone in by letting them know what you need. Help someone else be a blessing. There is as much blessing in learning to receive as there is in learning to give.

Blessing

My brothers and sisters, I bless you and give thanks for you. May the love of God flow through you to those who need an encouraging word. If it is possible, let those who might not be aware know that they are special to you personally and that you appreciate having them in your life, whether for a season or a lifetime. I pray that your Thanksgiving is one of reflection and jubilant celebration. Many blessings on your expressions of thanks both to the Heavenly Trinity and those you are grateful for here on earth. I pray that you hold your loved ones close, if only in your heart or via one of the many electronic platforms available to us during these challenging times. Having the option to participate in a Zoom or other electronic visit is a blessing. If we were struggling through this kind of pandemic years ago, today’s electronic forms of communication would not have been an option. May we express gratitude in our lives and relationships seeing even the smallest, most commonplace actions as opportunity for gratitude. Let us declare our gratitude to Him for all these things and so much more.

Have a fabulously blessed, safe and healthy Thanksgiving!

Prayer

Our Father in heaven, we come before you today to praise your name and to give you thanks. Only you knew us with all our frailties and imperfections even before we came to be, and you love us anyway. For this we thank you. Your word is sent down on our behalf and does not return to you empty but accomplishes your purposes exactly. For this we give you thanks. You know our beginning and our ending and through the Holy Spirit, you are always with us. Thank you, Father. In this season of thanksgiving, we humbly ask that you continue to guide us, strengthen us and build character and hope within us so that we us so that our lives might be examples of your love and faithfulness. Lord, help us to be forever grateful to you for all that you are. Help us to be grateful for one another as we engage in expressions, actions and relationships. We praise you, Father, and give you honor and glory. We bless your holy name in the matchless name of Jesus. Amen.