Thanksgiving is more than just a holiday

Thanksgiving is more than just a holiday. It is more than just time spent cooking a delicious meal or gathering of loved ones. It should be a time of reflection, a spiritual connection, or reconnection that shapes our relationship with God. Gratitude is not confined to one day in November. It is a daily expression of our worship, our trust, and our remembrance of God's faithfulness. Scripture calls God's people to give thanks, not only for what He has done but for who He is. As we gather around tables and reflect on our blessings, Thanksgiving becomes an opportunity to deepen our walk with God and to realign our hearts with Him. Throughout the Bible, thanksgiving goes hand to hand with worship. To give thanks is to acknowledge God as the giver of everything that is good. King David wrote in Psalm 107, "Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever." Being thankful must start with what God has done for us. Even those things that we do not know that He has done. The moments of protection, the guard from things meant to cause us harm, even for those that do not even acknowledge who He is. Even in our ignorance God has shed His love on us and extends His mercy toward us. How amazing it is that the King of all kings and Lord of all lords has the very thought of who you are on His mind. Thanksgiving should shift our focus from what we don't have to what God has provided. It shifts our mindset from ourselves to God's greatness. As we worship, we acknowledge the blessings of God, where praise and thanksgiving are never ending. No matter how we find ourselves, the Apostle Paul calls us to be thankful in all things in 1 Thessalonians Chapter 5. Whether we have plenty or whether we have little, we should find a reason to be thankful for where God has us. I can confess that many times we look at our situations and see the negative or the despair and leave out the thankfulness that we owe to God. Many times in my life I have sat and complained about the lack of what I think I need or don't have and did not thank God for those things that I did have. For too many people, they gauge how blessed they are on the possessions they have accrued. When things begin to be lost, the praise slowly leaves as well. Our thankfulness to God should never be based on material things in this life. We should thank God for the gift of salvation that He has extended to us. If we have salvation we have all that we could ever need. As we celebrate Thanksgiving this year, let us do more than enjoy a meal or a tradition. Let us ignite our hearts to continually give thanks, not just for the blessings we see, but for the God who is faithful in every season. May we worship Him with gratitude, remember His goodness, trust Him in all circumstances, testify of His works, and reflect His generosity to the world. May this Thanksgiving be a time of reflection, worship, renewed devotion, an offering of gratitude to our Heavenly Father, and a time where our hearts burn with desire to serve God. Let our thanksgiving propel others to see the abundance and direct their hearts toward God. Let us take the time to reflect on His goodness this Thanksgiving Day. Pastor Steven Temple is the pastor of The Church on the Hill in Rose Hill, Virginia. You can reach him at pastor.steven.temple@gmail.com.