GIVING THANKS

Today is a wonderful day.. better than yesterday.. I had many complaints then. I'll not rehash them, but I'm glad things look brighter today.
It's Thanksgiving Day in these United States. We are a nation that has been blessed by the unfailing love of God. We have so much all the time. Even the poor are not poor when you consider the poor in the rest of the world, though I'm referring to material blessings.
I've been wondering if next year there will be no day of Thanksgiving proclaimed by our President. It's done traditionally on the last Thursday of November.. and the proclamation is for the entire nation. I suppose some radical group will complain that it's a Christian holiday and the President will refuse to sign the official proclamation. If you think about it, it's change.
We thank God for all things every day, but that the nation takes one day to give that thanks seems to include the fact that there are some people who at least acknowledge God once a year.
I'd be offended if my President refused to acknowledge our Thanksgiving Day as referring to Thanking the Lord for all the bounty he heaps on our nation. It would seem to just be wrong.

Thanksgiving involves prayer. I give thanks every day for my family by name. I remember my mother telling me that she also did this for every member of the family. I'm thankful for her example to me personally.
At every meal we give thanks for the food we are about to eat because God has provided it all.
Prayer of thanks doesn't just occur on one day a year.. it's a daily and hourly thing. It acknowledges the goodness of God supplying our needs as they arise.
We learn to say thank you as a child.. we've all said to our children "what do you say?" with the response "thank you". We learn to be grateful for one thing or another. Soon it's a good habit when we realize someone has done or given or supplied a need or request for us. As we grow older we realize that all of the thanks belongs to God as he supplies the needs via others.
I'm thankful that I am loved and cared for, and for those who do so.
I'm thankful for my close friends whom I dearly love. I'm thankful that God has placed them in my life.
Now, I'm also thankful for the advanced technology we have in our generation. I don't think I could have handled an outhouse, horse and buggy for transportation, no running water, or no electricity as my mother dealt with in her early years. I could give up the TV set without any problem, as I don't watch it anyway.
But I am addicted to my computer and am a talk radio junkie. I find a wealth of information here.. the problem is sorting out truth.. but I'm thankful for it anyway.
I'm thankful for the employment that God has provided for us. It adds a small amount of income that we seem to need to get through each month. We don't have a lot, but we are content with what we have.
There is so much to be thankful for.. make your own list.. it's a blessing!

There is still some work to be done on the big meal today. I'm thankful that I'm able to participate in this 'feast day'. Each one of our families has made an expenditure to make the meal a really great one for all of us. I'm thankful for the fellowship and the fact that my family gets along so well, recognizing our differences as something positive.

Be thankful..