11.27.24
Giving Thanks, part two
The grateful Pilgrims declared a three-day feast in December 1621 to thank God and celebrate with their Indian friends at their first Thanksgiving Festival. Ninety Wampanoag Indians joined the fifty remaining Pilgrims for three days of feasting on shellfish, lobsters, turkey, cornbread, berries, deer, and other native foods. The young Pilgrims and their Wampanoag friends also engaged in races, wrestling matches, other athletic events, and, of course, prayer.
While the Pilgrims enjoyed times of prosperity for which they thanked God, they also suffered extreme hardships. For example, in 1623 they experienced an extended, prolonged drought. They knew that without a change in the weather, there would be no fall harvest. They anticipated another winter filled with death and starvation.
Governor Bradford’s response was to call the Pilgrims to a time of prayer and fasting to seek God’s direct intervention. Shortly after that time of prayer, to the great amazement of the Indians who were watching, clouds suddenly appeared in the sky and a gentle, steady rain began to fall.
Governor Bradford explained: “The rain came without either wind or thunder or any violence, and by degrees in abundance, as that ye earth was thoroughly wet and soaked therewith, which did so apparently revive and quicken ye decayed corn and other fruits as was wonderful to see, and made ye Indians astonished to behold; and afterwards the Lord sent them such seasonable showers, with interchange of fair warm weather as, through His blessing, caused a fruitful and liberal harvest.” The drought had been broken, the fall harvest was abundant, and there was cause for yet another Thanksgiving celebration.
Neighboring colonies later followed the Pilgrims’ example—calling for days of thanksgiving, as well as times of prayer and fasting. In fact, it became common in all the New England colonies to call for a day of prayer and fasting in the spring, and a day of prayer and thanksgiving in the fall. They understood very well that their bountiful harvests came directly from the hand of a beneficent God.
Many Americans in the 21st Century seem to believe that we can expect an annual bountiful harvest without continuing to trust and honor the loving God Who alone provides it. As you celebrate Thanksgiving this year, remember to retain the original gratitude to God that has always been the spirit of this oldest of all American holidays. Continue to remember that it is God alone Who provides.
President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday in November 1863 as a day “of Thanksgiving and Praise to our benevolent Father,” even as the winds of war continued to batter a divided nation.
[Credit is given to the Christian Law Association, Seminole, FL, for this information; used by permission.]
In 2024, God is still in control. We must continue to praise and thank Him this Thanksgiving for His blessings in the midst of our challenges. The greatest blessing is the gift of His Son, His “unspeakable gift.”
As always, if we at Immanuel Baptist Church can be of any help to you, please feel free to call upon us.