Here’s an article that I submitted to The Hamilton News for publication this week:

Over the next few days we’ll probably eat pretty well. Thanksgiving Day is a special occasion in America even for those who aren’t thankful. The old preacher Harry A. Ironsides was once sitting next to a stranger in a restaurant. When his food arrived, he bowed his head to give thanks.

The stranger interrupted him, “One of those, huh? I work hard for my money. When my food comes, I just dig right in”.

“Yes,” replied Ironsides, “I have a dog that does that, too.”

The main difference between animals and humans is that humans have the capability to relate to God through the Spirit. Animals do not.

In the Gospel of John chapter 6 there is a story of Jesus feeding a crowd of 5,000 with five small barley loaves and two small fish. Verse 11 says, “Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish”.

After the meal was finished, His disciples gathered up twelve baskets of leftovers for another day. The Bible clearly called that a “miraculous sign” that convinced many that Jesus was the Prophet.

The next day people came from all around to see this Jesus who had performed the miraculous sign. John 6:23 records, “Then some boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the people had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks.”

Note that John connected the miraculous provision to the Lord giving thanks. Perhaps there’s more to giving thanks that a quick prayer before we dig in. Perhaps thanksgiving is a heart attitude recognizing God as our Provider.

What might happen if we were not intimidated by our unbelieving Uncle Charlie, and lead a sincere prayer of thanks to God for His abundant provision this Thanksgiving? I suggest we give it a shot before we enjoy the bounty. Perhaps a miracle will follow.

Tags: thanksgiving

This year I’m thankful for several things.

• I’m thankful that Layna Houser has joined our family as my new daughter-in-law. She’ll be good for Adam.
• I’m thankful that Ruby Diehl’s adoption was just finalized, giving us a new granddaughter.
• I’m thankful that God is giving us responders to our new emphasis upon making disciples. That’s a cultural shift that’s just beginning.
• I’m thankful that Anita and I will get to spend Thanksgiving Day with our daughter and family in Nashville, Tennessee. This is a first.
• I’m thankful for faithful supporters in the church who do not run from their responsibilities.
• I’m thankful for new leaders Christ is bringing in from other churches. They have a foundation already laid that we can build upon.
• I’m thankful for five new converts that just made decisions for Christ this past weekend.
• I’m thankful for the five believers who were just baptized last weekend.

What are you thankful for this year?

Tags: thanksgiving

The first annual day of thanksgiving was instituted in England long before the Pilgrims called for their Thanksgiving Day. On November 5, 1605, Guy Fawkes was captured standing guard over 36 barrels of gunpowder hidden in a vault under the House of Lords. He and his accomplices planned to blow up Parliament on its opening day, with the king, the royal family, the House of Lords, and the Commons in attendance. The leadership of England would be destroyed in one massive explosion. In this way the Catholic conspirators hoped to rid England of the disease of Protestantism! Does that sound like something we would read in today’s newspapers?

That the conspirators were discovered before any harm was done was certainly cause for thanksgiving. The traitors were arrested and executed, and parliament ordered November 5 to be kept as a “public thanksgiving to Almighty God.” This was to be an annual day of thanksgiving, “that unfeigned thankfulness may never be forgotten, and that all ages to come may yield praises to God’s divine majesty for the same.” Guy Fawkes Day continues to be celebrated in England.

If you could start your own national holiday, what would be the occasion and when?

Tags: thanksgiving

When George W. Bush was President, he made a surprise visit to serve Thanksgiving Day dinner to soldiers deployed to Iraq during the heat of that war. One reporter covering the story thought that some might save their meal as a souvenir, explaining, “Its not often that anyone is served by the President.”

Wait a minute, I thought elected officials were public servants. It is their job to serve their people. Yet, we rarely think of what they do as serving us. So, should one act of service been one of the biggest new items of the day?

Remember the words of Jesus: “Those who are considered rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you. Whoever of you desires to be first shall be servant of all. The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve” (Mark 1042-45). Let’s find someone to serve today.

Tags: Bush, Iraq, serve, thanksgiving

Yesterday I came home for lunch. Anita was running errands, so I was “home alone”. I was walking around the house, eating my sandwich, when I noticed something black emerging from some weeds in the bean field behind me. At first I thought it was a buzzard. But the size caught my eye. As he strolled out into the clear snowy field, I saw was too big for a buzzard. Soon he turned to the side and I noticed it was a full grown turkey.

Soon another strolled out behind him, then another, then another. Soon I counted twelve toms and hens roaming about the field in search of some seeds to eat. Against the new fallen snow, they looked beautiful. I smiled as I watched them, until I remembered I was eating a shaved turkey sandwich. So, I hid my sandwich behind my back.

So, how do I prove this experience if no one else was here to see it with me? I guess this will be my story alone. It was the day I found a wild turkey and made myself a turkey sandwich.

Tags: thanksgiving, turkey

Today is Thanksgiving Day! And I am truly thankful to God for His provision in my life.

I have a memory branded into my memory of Thanksgiving. It was Thanksgiving Day, 1967. I was serving in the US Army stationed at Fort Knox, Kentucky, working in the basement of Post Headquarters with a lot of brass around. I had a 4-day holiday pass, so I bought a Greyhound Bus ticket to the old bus station in Fort Wayne. I left base about 4PM and arrived in Fort Wayne about 2AM. Dad drove down there to pick me up.

After Thanksgiving dinner, Dad and I took our shotguns and went rabbit hunting together. The rabbits all survived that day, but what a memory I still have of my Dad mentoring me. Whenever I think of Thanksgiving I recall that time I had with my Dad.

What’s a memory etched in your mind when you think of Thanksgiving Day?

Tags: thanksgiving