Thanksgiving ... by Dave Evans

America has a rich history of observing a day of thanksgiving. It became a national holiday over one hundred fifty years ago, in 1863, when President Lincoln set aside the last Thursday in November to celebrate it. Subsequently, the holiday was changed to the current fourth Thursday in November.

Giving thanks to God is good, as the Psalmist declared: “It is good to give thanks to the LORD…” (Psalm 92:1a NKJV). After all, when we do, we acknowledge He is the beneficent giver who confers good gifts to us—“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights …” (James 1:17a NKJV). The praise ascribed to God in the first line of the Doxology stresses this truth: “Praise God from whom all blessings flow.”

At Thanksgiving, our gratitude often focuses on the temporal gifts God has provided, such as family and friends, health, food, shelter, and the freedoms afforded us in the United States. God has certainly been gracious to us in these matters and we do well in expressing our thanks to Him for them.

In addition to these and other material benefits, God should be thanked for all the spiritual gifts and blessings which He has bestowed upon those of us who have trusted in Him. Let’s remember to thank Him for such endowments as:

The gift of Jesus—through whom we are reconciled to God and made heirs with Christ. “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” (2 Corinthians 9:15 NKJV).

Redemption and forgiveness of sins—Jesus accomplished this by dying in our place and paying the penalty for our sins in order to redeem us and forgive our sins. “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.” (Ephesians 1:7 NKJV).

A right standing before God—“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21 NASB 95).

All spiritual blessings—“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.” (Ephesians 1:3 NKJV).

All that we need for life and godly living—“as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue.” (2 Peter 1:3 NKJV).

The continual spiritual presence of Jesus—“and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Amen.” (Matthew 28:20b NKJV).

A future home in heaven—“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever.” (Psalm 23:6 NKJV).

For all His bountiful goodness to us, both temporal and spiritual, “Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving; Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.” (Psalm 95:2 NKJV).

Happy Thanksgiving!

Dave Evans

Dave Evans recently retired from his career as an estimator for an electrical contractor, but still works part-time. He recently served as Body Care Pastor for a small church and previously taught at a local Bible College for several years. God led him to found and serve in several outreach ministries—a pet therapy ministry, visiting several skilled nursing facilities and retirement homes: a prayer booth on a local street corner to allow people in the community to stop by for prayer needs and an evangelism table, typically set up once a month at various malls or stores, which made Bibles, tracts, DVDs, and other Christian materials available free of charge to interested shoppers. Dave has a bachelor’s degree in business administration/management. As a writer, he has had many poems and articles published in various periodicals and books. And he’s been privileged to do volunteer work for a local police department.

Photo by Karen Ruhl