Thanksgiving and Praise
The last leaves cling with all their might to tree limbs, as the grey cold of winter marches in. Once bursting in a fire of reds, oranges, and yellows, the twigs and branches are left with a smattering of glowing embers.
It’s interesting that Thanksgiving takes place well past harvest time, in a month that can look awfully dreary, dull, and dead.
But in one sense, that makes November the perfect fit.
In Psalm 116, the psalmist writes:
“I will offer to You [God] the sacrifice of Thanksgiving and will call upon the name of the Lord.”
It’s a funny phrase, the sacrifice of Thanksgiving (unless you’re a turkey, in which it may seem ever so appropriate).
The hardest moments in life—when we feel dreary, dull, and dry—are usually when we least feel like giving God thanks and praise. But when we choose to push past that, our Thanksgiving comes as a sacrificial offering.
The Bible says in Matthew 5:46, “for if you love those who love you, what reward have you?” Taking that same logic, what effort does it take to thank and praise God when you’re living on the mountain top? Would not the thanks and praise in the hardest moments be a sweeter and more fragrant offering to God?
President Abraham Lincoln found himself in such a spot on Oct. 3 as he established the first national day of Thanksgiving and Praise.
The year was 1863 and the United States was in the third year of a devastating civil war that tore the nation in two. Just months earlier, the blood of more than 45,000 men stained the soil of Gettysburg a crimson red.
You might think it an odd time to declare such a holiday, but it couldn’t be more biblical.
Whenever turmoil or strife is upon our door, we are called to keep our eyes on things above, not on things going on around us—to trust God to fight our battles and praise Him for the victory.
When Paul and Silas were thrown in jail (Acts 16), they “were praying and singing hymns to God” well before the jail cell door swung open and their chains fell off.
And that is exactly what President Lincoln chose to do. He gave thanks and praise to God in the midst of a storm.
“[This year] has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come…I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States…to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens…and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it…”
You may be living life on the mountain, in the valley, or somewhere in-between. But no matter where you are, there is always something to be thankful for— breath in your lungs, salvation, or, as Paul and Silas, the breakthrough that is to come.
So, what are you thankful for this year? Take time today to reflect, write down five things, and give God praise.
“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” -1Thessalonians 5:16-18