Thanksgiving Thoughts

Our hearts overflow with Thanksgiving for all the blessings God has bestowed upon us. You might have a favorite scripture about giving thanks. Most of us have a traditional prayer that it said when we eat our Thanksgiving dinner.

This is a prayer from Abigail Van Buren:

Heather Bell

Oh heavenly father, we thank thee for food and remember the hungry.
We thank thee for health and remember the sick.
We thank thee for friends and remember the friendless.
We thank thee for freedom and remember the enslaved.
May these remembrances stir us to service, that thy gifts to us may be used for others. Amen
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I think this is a nice prayer that brings to mind having compassion for those who do not have the basic comforts we take for granted. When I read these words and try to apply it to my life, I find myself wondering how to go deeper than merely “remembering” all those listed in the prayer.
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These are my thoughts that are modeled on a prayer written by Charles E. Moore:

Oh, Lord, how can I thank you for the bounty on my table and the extras stuffed in my fridge when so many do not know when their next meal might be?

Oh, Lord, how can I thank you for my health when others are sick and cannot afford to pay for their prescriptions?

Lord, how can I thank you for the love of my family and friends when there are so many lonely and depressed children and adults?
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Oh, Lord, how can I thank you for the freedoms we enjoy when there are soldiers suffering from the traumas they’ve endured?

Oh, Lord, how can I thank you for the blessings you bestow, unless I:
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Spend less on myself, and give more to others.
Befriend the friendless and help the helpless.
Strengthen the week and lift up the downcast.
Share faith with faithless, and pray for the hopeless.
Thank the thankless and defend the defenseless.
Embrace the rejected and feed the hungry.

Oh, Lord, I have so much to be grateful for. But this is what I ask of you: help me to thank you not just with my words, but with the daily life I live.

​Our church mission to LOVE FIRST demonstrates putting these ideas into action. The Neighborhood Clothing Closet provides for local families to dress their children nicely. Our Community Outreach Ministry has exposed us to new ideas through their Coffeehouse Conversations. Sermon-based Small Groups are enriching spiritual growth and growing friendships. Our Turkey Drive will be supporting hungry families with grocery gift cards. There are so many good things our church is doing for others. Through these programs, we are living out the words of Abigail Van Buren, “May these remembrances stir us to service that thy gifts to us may be used for others.”
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In His Name, Heather