Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Thanksgiving


"Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good.  His love endures forever."


Psalm 136:1-26

The season of giving thanks is once again upon us.  On this one day that is set aside each year, families and friends will gather joyfully together and feast upon the bounties and provisions with which they have been so richly blessed.  Inside homes all across our nation, the delightful aromas of roasted turkey and stuffing and baked pumpkin pies will tantalize the senses and cause some to recall earlier memories of other Thanksgiving holidays.  Smiles and laughter will fill the air and a feeling of celebration will fall over all the participants, uniting them in a brief moment of family closeness and the necessity of it as they think of those who are unable to be with them.

The cause for the Thanksgiving celebration should not be limited to only one day each year.  It should be that we are reminded daily of the blessings God has poured out upon us, and the richness of His mercy and grace.  Each morning we should rise to the heavenly aroma of His gracious presence and look with anticipation to the day when all of His children will rush to the table that has been prepared for them; a table holding delicacies beyond their imagination.  The feast that awaits us defies the meager meal that is prepared by our hands on this day, for it is one that will last for an eternity.  Jesus will have all His family gathered around Him and His greatest delight will be that not one of them is missing.

I pray you will all pause a few moments before tackling the feast that awaits you and remember the ones who have left a vacancy at the table.  Whether they are service men and women in foreign lands, a family member too far from home to be there, or the less fortunate whose daily struggles of survival make it impossible to share in such a celebration, leave an empty chair at your table as a reminder of them and pray that one day they, too, will partake in the greatest Thanksgiving celebration of all time.

May the Lord our God bless you and your families.  May your prayers of thanksgiving be a pleasing aroma to Him.  And may we all be united one bright and glorious day as we are joined at His table to praise and thank Him for eternity!

Have a great day, everyone!  We will be thinking of you!