Thanksgiving is a day when many Americans gather around with family for an afternoon of food and football. Thanksgiving week is the busiest traveled holiday during the year. But none can probably top the travel of a group of English settlers, who left on a ship called the Mayflower in the fall of 1620 from England, traveling to North America where they ended up in Cape Cod Harbor establishing Plymouth, the first colony.
The Thanksgiving Story
Many Thanksgiving stories start with the newly arrived Pilgrims and the Wampanoag Indians gathering at Plymouth for an autumn harvest celebration. After a devastating winter where many lives were lost, that following harvest of 1621, turned out to be a bountiful one. Now many of us who have read our history books, or portrayed a pilgrim in various school plays were taught that this moment in history established our very “first Thanksgiving holiday,” although, in all actuality, it took over 200 more years for it to be recognized as the national holiday as we know of it today. But nevertheless, this joyous occasion was considered a celebration gathering of thanks and praise that continued for three days.
What Brought the English Settlers to America
These Pilgrims were originally members of the English Separatist Church. They fled their home in England and sailed to The Netherlands to escape religious persecution. There, they enjoyed more religious freedom, but eventually became dissatisfied with the Dutch way of life, thinking it ungodly. Seeking a better life, they made their maiden voyage to America.
Though this set of Pilgrims brought more attention to this holiday called Thanksgiving, this was not the first thanksgiving to take place on this nation’s soil. Bestowing thanks for the Creator’s gifts had always been a part of the Wampanoag life. Native people of North America have held ceremonies since ancient times in celebrations of giving thanks for good fortunes.
The arrival of the Pilgrims and Puritans brought new traditions to America which became a solemn religious observance combining prayer and feast. In a letter from Edward Winslow to a friend in England, he states: “And God be praised, we had a good increase…. Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruit of our labors….” Winslow continues, “These things I thought good to let you understand… that you might on our behalf give God thanks who hath dealt so favorably with us.”
Governor William Bradford's proclamation of the first Thanksgiving Day on November 29, 1623 ordered a public ceremony to "render thanksgiving to ye, Almighty God for all His blessings.”
Before that, on September 8, 1565, Spanish explorers celebrated Mass in gratitude for their safe arrival at what is now St. Augustine, Florida. Another Mass of thanksgiving was celebrated by Spanish explorers in present-day Texas on April 30, 1598. The first official Thanksgiving ceremony in the American colonies was December 4, 1619, when English settlers arrived at the Berkeley Hundred settlement in Virginia.
On October 3, 1863 President Abraham Lincoln announced that the nation would celebrate an official Thanksgiving holiday on November 26, 1863, which was inspired from an original declaration when George Washington in 1789 called for an official day of thanksgiving and prayer. Congress overwhelming agreed. Lincoln proclaimed a national day of “Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens,” to be celebrated on the last Thursday in November.
By 1939, times had changed. Some merchants worried a late Thanksgiving would cut down sales in the Christmas shopping season. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt felt pressured to change Thanksgiving from the last Thursday of November (which fell on November 30 that year) to the fourth Thursday so they could have an extra week to peddle their Christmas wares. It caused a great confusion to many, since calendars, and school and vacation schedules, were already set according to tradition. About half of the country celebrated one week before the other half, while Texas and Colorado celebrated both dates. Congress eventually stepped in and on December 26, 1941, less than a month after the attack on Pearl Harbor, made a 1941 joint resolution that Thanksgiving Day would always be observed on the fourth Thursday of November. The resolution became law in 1977 (Public Law 77-379), declaring "the fourth Thursday of every November: A National Day of Thanksgiving." What a pitiful contrast to the inspiring tributes made by our founders in regard to what was meant to be a God-centered holiday.
One of God’s Commands
With the many transgressions of our country's current leaders it is easy to forget that the United States was once governed by devout men who acknowledged the one true God and celebrated Him in everything. They were courageously unafraid to give public thanks to God and crossed hardship to do so. One of the great commands in scripture is to give thanksgiving to God, for all He has done for us. In Psalms 100:4 (NKJV) we are taught to: Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, And into his courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. Christ, Himself, was the perfect example of obeying this commandment.
Why Giving Thanks to God is Important
This great land has seen many sacrifices. But God gave the ultimate sacrifice with his son Jesus Christ, who died upon the cross so that we might live. We have so much more to be thankful for than we realize. Reality can be a constant life of demands, struggles, and worries which give more room to defeat than that to a heart of thanks.
But here’s what can make a lasting difference. We have a choice, every day, to give Him thanks and praise. And with a heart of thanksgiving, we realize that no matter what we face, God doesn’t just work to change our situations and help us through our problems, He does so much more, He changes our hearts. His power, through hearts of gratitude and praise, keeps our minds focused on Him, releasing the grip that our struggles have over us. We're strengthened by His peace, refueled by His joy.
God's Word is filled with many reminders of how powerful and vital a thankful heart can be in this world. The writer of Psalm 106:1 (KJV) says “Praise ye the Lord. O give thanks unto the Lord; for He is good: for His mercy endureth forever.”
Paul writes in I Thessalonians 5:18 (KJV), “In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” Hebrews 13:15 (KJV) calls for a “sacrifice of praise”…“By Him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name.”
Attitude is Everything, Pick a Good One
Being thankful may not change your situation, but it will change your heart.
Rejoice in all the wonderful things God has done for you. Are you saved through faith in Jesus? Start with that. Look for the little things. The small is not insignificant.
It is impossible to remain in the depths of despair when you realize just how wonderful your Heavenly Father is.
The best time to be thankful is when you don’t feel like it. For it is impossible to be truly thankful and filled with negativity and ungratefulness at the same time.
Call upon God’s name to give thanks to him more often and more intentionally.
Be a testimony for others to see God’s love. Live it. Before you even open your mouth let others see Jesus in you.
Expressing thanks opens us up to God’s grace.
Gratitude realigns us to the Giver and increases His activity in our lives. We were never intended to be fully self-sufficient in this life. It reminds us we're not in control, but that we serve a Mighty God who is.
A grateful heart reminds us that ultimately God is our Provider, which all blessings and gifts are graciously given to us by His hand. It keeps us in a place of humility and dependency on Him, as we recognize how much we need Him.
It removes the attention off ourselves and our problems, but instead helps us focus back onto God and to remember the goodness of His many blessings.
Giving thanks to God keeps our hearts in right relationship with Him and saves us from a host of harmful emotions and attitudes that will rob us of the peace God wants us to experience.