Five Thanksgiving Day Commands
by Stan Coffey
Psalms 106:1 ''Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures forever.'' Psalm 100:1-5 ''Make a joyful shout to the Lord all you lands. Serve the Lord with gladness. Come before His presence with singing. Know that the Lord, He is God. It is He who has made us and not we ourselves. We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him and bless His name.'' With all of my heart I believe this wonderful Psalm. We are to give thanks for the...
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Reasons for Thanksgiving
by Stephen Whitney
On September 16, 1620, 102 passengers boarded a ship called the Mayflower with the hope of finding religious freedom. After a 65 day voyage across the storm-tossed Atlantic the Pilgrims landed in Provincetown Massachusetts on November 21st. By the time spring came almost half of the people had died from poor nutrition and sicknesses. But despite the trials they endured, in September of 1621 they held a feast of thanksgiving...
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Thanksgiving 101
by Mike Stone
Last week, one of the kids asked, ‘‘What is Thanksgiving?’’ I replied ‘‘Thanksgiving is that day where you drive for hours to spend time with family members you only see once a year, only to be reminded...once a year is WAY TOO OFTEN!’’But all jokes aside, Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday. And more than that, it is a Divine command for the people of God. Listen to how the anonymous writer to the Hebrews expresses the mandate...
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Five Eternal Benefits of Thanksgiving
by Donald Cantrell
The Mayflower launched with 102 passengers, 74 male and 28 female, and a crew headed by Master Christopher Jones. About half of the passengers died in the first winter. Many Americans can trace their ancestry back to one or more of these individuals who have become known as the Pilgrims. A group of 104 departed England on the Mayflower on Sept. 6, 1620 and landed on what became Plymouth on...
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Thanksgiving Leftovers
by Steve Jones
At the Thanksgiving lunch junior gorged himself on all of his favorite dishes: green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, macaroni and cheese, turkey and dressing with gravy, cranberry sauce, homemade biscuits, followed by pumpkin pie, pecan pie, cherry pie and vanilla ice cream. Five hours later, the family gathered to eat again and the table was laden with the leftovers. Junior wasn't the least bit hungry. He was still full from that unbelievable lunch. But these were all of his favorites and he wanted to eat something so he bowed his head and uttered this simple prayer, ''Lord, STRETCH ME.'' I love leftovers. Not everyone...
How to Celebrate Thanksgiving
by Stan Coffey
On Thanksgiving Day we carry out a tradition as old as America. In 1621 after a terrible year in which half their number died of starvation or disease, the Pilgrims set aside three days in December to praise the Lord for a bountiful harvest of corn. Many years later in 1789, President George Washington proclaimed November 26 as a national day of Thanksgiving unto the Lord. This was in response to God's granting America independence from Britain. In 1863 Abraham Lincoln revived this tradition of giving thanks to the Lord, and finally in 1941, the United States Congress decreed that the fourth Thursday in November...
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A Wonderful Life Of Thanksgiving
by Marvin D. Patterson
Here is a list that several housewives compiled. They wrote that that were especially thankful for: - For automatic dish washers because they make it possible - For us to get out of the kitchen before the family comes back in for their after dinner snacks. - For husbands who attack small repair jobs around the house because they usually make them big enough to call in the professionals. - For children who put away their things and clean up after themselves. They're such a joy you hate to see them go home to their parents. - For teenagers because they give parents an opportunity to learn a second language. - For smoke alarms because...
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Communion: The Original Thanksgiving Meal
by Dave Gustavsen
Four days from now, most of us will be having some kind of Thanksgiving meal. And I have a feeling it's going to be different from any other Thanksgiving meal we've ever had. A lot of families who normally have many people around the table are only going to have a few people around the table, because those out-of-state relatives won't be coming this year. Some families will be trying to meet outside for safety, and that's going to change the whole feel of Thanksgiving dinner. For some people who live alone, and some people in care...
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Thanksgiving: ''Food, Family, Football, and Faith"
by Richard Bradley
Food, family, and football. Does this lineup sound familiar to you? Sounds like Thanksgiving to me. In fact, Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday because it so effectively incorporates all three. I know some are asking, ''What about Christmas?'' Don't get me wrong. Christmas is also a special holiday but it's gotten so commercialized it's almost not recognizable as the Christmas of my boyhood. Thanksgiving, however, hasn't really changed that much. Deep frying turkeys is about the only difference between 1917 and 2017. Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday but I believe we can make it even better. If we add faith to the lineup and make sure it's more important to us than the other three we'll have a special day indeed. As important as food, family, and football are to our southern tradition of Thanksgiving, faith should be even more so. This Thanksgiving, notice what Paul said we should be thankful for because of our faith in Christ.
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Thanksgiving - More Than A Holiday
by David Cawston
Thanksgiving needs to be the attitude of the believer at all times. This is God's will! Illustration: December 31st 1993 Nancy and Heather going to Tulsa and Nancy's wallet stolen at the Philadelphia Airport. We don't have to be thankful for all things but we must learn to have a heart and attitude of thankfulness in all things. That was the picture that the Pilgrims left. They were thankful that in their difficulties. With cold and hardship and tragedies that God was with them in them all. Thanksgiving was a way of life for the early Christians. We should follow their example and learn from them. I. Thanksgiving in Worship Luke 24:52-53....
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How to Turn Thanksgiving into Thanksliving
by Adrian Rogers
''Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness and for his wonderful works to the children of men and let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving.'' If you don't mind writing in your bible would you underscore those phrases right there, ''the sacrifices of thanksgiving'' and ''declare his works with rejoicing.'' It has been said that talk is cheap. We thank the Lord and we say Lord, we're so thankful, we're so grateful for all that you've done for us. Well, do you know what we need to do? We need to turn Thanksgiving into Thanks-living. That is, to offer to God the sacrifices of thanksgiving. If we're thankful it really ought to show...
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The Offering of Thanksgiving
by Jerry Vines
I'm praying God will use this message to help you and me as we prepare ourselves for the observance of Thanksgiving.Does it seem like 2003 has gone just like that? Here we are in the last days of the month of November, moving into December, coming to Thanksgiving. One month later we will be going into Christmas. God willing we will be moving into...
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Make Thanksgiving Meaningful
by Miles Seaborn
On a cold, rainy day in late November 1935, a tramp - a hobo - came to the back door of may aunt's home begging for food. The nation and the world were locked tightly in the grip of a tragic depression. My aunt's house in Bossier City, Louisiana (just outside of Shreveport), was about one block from the Illinois Central Railroad's local switching yards. It was also close to the main line from New Orleans to Chicago. During those poverty-ridden days restless and hungry men "rode the rails" from border to border and coast to coast. In their misery they sought food, shelter, and work at every hamlet or town. Whenever a freight...
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The Atomosphere of Thanksgiving
by David Cawston
1Thes 5:18 18In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. (KJV) Introduction: An Attitude of Thanksgiving is one of Choice! We create atmospheres! Bad Atmospheres Husband and wife after work Illustration: One of my favorite attitude stories is about Grandpa and Grandma who visited the Grandchildren. Each afternoon Grandpa would lie down for a nap.One day as a practical joke, the kids decided to put Limburger cheese on his mustache. Quite soon after, he awoke sniffing and asking, "Why does this room stink?" He got up and went into the kitchen. He...
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The Soul Music Of Thanksgiving
by Ernest Easley
On this Sunday night before Thanksgiving Day... take your Bible and turn to the book of Thanksgiving and Praise. And of course... that would be the book of Psalms! Once there... head straight to the 103rd Psalm. Now as you're finding Psalm 103... let me tell you that the Hebrew word translated ''Psalms'' comes from the Hebrew word ''Hallelujah'' which means ''praise the Lord.'' So... when somebody says, ''Hallelujah''.. what are they saying? They are saying, ''Praise the Lord!'' And by the way... this word ''hallelujah'' cuts across the language barrier. It translates the same in every language! Well... that's what the book of Psalms is...
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Thanksgiving Every Day
by James Merritt
1. If I were to give you a pop quiz right now and ask you the question, ''When is Thanksgiving Day?'' I wonder how many of you could give me the correct answer? Some of you may be thinking - do you mean the ''exact'' date? Not really, because the date varies from year to year. Some of you might say, ''I know it is a Thursday in November.'' Yes, but which Thursday? 2. Even if you guessed the exact date which this year happens to be November 24th, you still wouldn't give me the answer that I am looking for. The official Thanksgiving Day goes all the way back to 1789 when George Washington, the first President of the...
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3 Things to Be Thankful For
by Palitha Jayasooriya
Recently, my brother Nimal, who was formerly a ship's captain and is now a lay Pastor in our church, shared the Word of God in one of our services. In that sermon he expressed his appreciation and thanks to me for being the first in our family circle to accept the Lord Jesus and for holding on to that commitment in the midst of much opposition. The end result, he mentioned, was that he and eventually our entire family, came to salvation. I was so glad that after all these years he still remembered and was thankful. We live in a world where gratitude is often not expressed and help given is easily forgotten. Undercutting and...
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When God Opens Heavens Windows
by Donald Cantrell
The following is a true story. In 1984, Mike and his family belonged to an East Coast church. One Sunday evening, the sermon was on sacrificial offerings, and then they collected a special offering at the end of the sermon. The only money in Mike's wallet was a $50 bill, which was supposed to buy a week's worth of groceries for his wife, their five children, and himself. However, in a move of faith, Mike put the $50 bill in the offering. Then, after the conclusion of the service, the family went out to the parking lot to go home. Within minutes, they joyfully returned to the sanctuary and asked the pastor to come outside and see...
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Thanksgiving: The Stress Melting Holiday
by Scott Maze
We're just a few days away from one of America's most loved holidays - Thanksgiving. My wife loves the holiday because it doesn't require all the preparation that Christmas asks for. It's ''the relax and enjoy the calm'' holiday! Today, I invite you to consider with me - Thanksgiving: The Stress Melting Holiday.Psalm 118 is historically connected to the Passover meal. Let me back up: the Jews celebrated a three great feasts every year, at which it was mandatory if you lived within a certain distance to Jerusalem, all the males must attend the feast at the temple. They were the Passover, Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles. For each of those celebrations, there were certain psalms that were recited and sung for the celebrations. And Psalm 113 to Psalm 118...
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Offering the Sacrifice of Thanksgiving (2 of 3)
by Ken Trivette
1. Last Sunday morning we saw from the words of Peter that as believers we are priests and as priests we are to offer spiritual sacrifices. As we continue that thought I point out that Peter speaks of the believer as a ''holy'' priests (2:5), and ''royal'' priests'' (2:9). 2. As a holy priesthood we see our purpose. The word ''holy'' speaks of that which is sacred. The priests in the Old Testament were sacred in the sense they were set apart with a divine purpose. A specific part of that purpose was to offer sacrifices to God. As a holy priesthood one great purpose of the Christian life is the offering of spiritual sacrifices to God. 3. As a royal...
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