Our nation has been observing Thanksgiving since November 26, 1789, after President George Washington signed a proclamation calling the nation to a “Day of Public Thanksgiving.” While several States celebrated Thanksgiving on different Thursdays, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued a proclamation in 1941 that Congress agreed to call on States to observe Thanksgiving on the same day. Since that time our nation has been unified on Thanksgiving.
Our nation has been blessed in many ways. It is good for our nation to “pause” and to consider and celebrate our many blessings. As we gather with family members, friends and even strangers, we lift our prayers to God with grateful hearts.
Someone was inspired, after reading Hebrews 13:15-16 and Psalm 145:18, to write these words: “When the peace of Christ rules in our hearts, thankfulness overflows. Even in the darkest of times, we can praise God for His love, His sovereignty, and His promise to be near us when we call.”
There are many hymns we can use at Thanksgiving. We know these verses by heart and know their tunes well. For example: “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation; O my soul, praise him. for he is your health and salvation”. Or this one: “Now thank we all our God with heart and hands and voices, who wondrous things have done, in whom his world rejoices”.
Scriptures call us to praise God for all good things. Psalm 100:4-5 says “Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise: give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.”
As you gather at Thanksgiving and you join hands in prayer, remember those who have gone before us and shared with us the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Approach the Lord with grateful hearts and sing to him your songs of joy. In spite of the dark days, He is still here with us.
Psalm 69:30 “I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with Thanksgiving”
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One Minute is written by Pastor Ron Rehrer, Counselor for Church Workers of the PSD. He can be contacted by phone at 949.433.5182 and e-mail at ron@ronrehrer.com.