Grateful Gobbling: Finding God in Thanksgiving

No question, Thanksgiving Day stirs up thoughts of pilgrims, turkey, and pumpkin pie. But is it possible to find God in the holiday?

The pilgrims came here seeking freedom of you know what. 

When they landed, they gave thanks to you know who. 

Because of them, we can worship each Sunday you know where.

A fourth grader’s report on the first Thanksgiving when the classroom teacher requested students make no reference to God (source unknown).

While believers remain disturbed about Christmas devoid of God, what about the holiday before the birth of Christ?

How Do We Find and Keep God in Thanksgiving?

Thanksgiving celebrates more than pilgrims and gobbling up turkey.

First, review this summary of definitions for gobble:

1) The sound a male turkey makes.

2) To eat, devour, grab, or use something up in a speedy or greedy way.

And some definitions also cite to eat noisily. That’s another article on etiquette but try not to do this at the Thanksgiving table.

“To gobble” suggests:

• An action without reflection beforehand.
• No careful consideration of the devoured item.
• No gratefulness of where the means derived.
• A general lack of thankfulness for the provision.

But to give thanks—maybe like the first Thanksgiving—we are grateful for our “haves” without begrudging our “have-nots.” And as the pilgrims, we carry a thankful heart for the place we’ve landed, whatever it looks like for each of us.

#Thankful for the cornucopia of many #blessings received and yet to be given from our Maker. Share on X

Abundant Provision and Freedom

Because we see ample cynicism in the media, government, society, and perhaps in us. There’s a lot of ungrateful gobbling going on.

Still, we rise above the negativity when we remember this truth. We always have plenty to be thankful for.

But we often lose sight of giving thanks for freedoms. And no matter how we have to say it, like in the fourth grader’s report, we do say it, and we carry thankfulness in our heart.

Often, a sigh of relief is spoken with “Thank God!” Maybe we received good news from a medical report or found out our loved one wasn’t hurt in an accident. Wonderful things to be thankful for.

Yet, thanksgiving—real thanksgiving in our heart—overflows in gratitude more than one day a year. And continual grateful gobbles define our lives and our character.

Not just as a relief that something turned out good in the end. But thanking God, that in the end, we understand all good things come from Him.

Gobbling and Fullness

So before gobbling up a turkey leg or piece of pumpkin pie this Thanksgiving, contemplate the fullness in our lives because of a generous God.

Grateful people are #generous people. Generous people are #grateful people. Share on X

Then consider how we show ourselves to be generous people. What does it look like in daily life? How is grateful and generous displayed in our communities and in our world?

Because we see the hungry, the homeless, and those without basic needs—the “least of these” (Matthew 25:35-40).

#Generosity helps others, models #Jesus, and shows the world true thankfulness. Share on X

So this Thanksgiving season, thank God for fullness of stomach, life, love, family, freedoms, and for every spiritual blessing in Christ (Ephesians 1:3).

“Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and a thank offering and into His courts with praise! Be thankful and say so to Him, bless and affectionately praise His name! For the Lord is good; His mercy and loving-kindness are everlasting, His faithfulness and truth endure to all generations” Psalm 100:4-5 AMP.

Special Thanksgiving Note: I post an article every Thursday by Girl Friday. But I will not be posting a new blog next week on Thanksgiving Day. Instead I’ll be with family and giving thanks. Wishing you and your family a wonderful day full of gratefulness and thanksgiving and praise to God. Happy Thanksgiving! 

© 2017 by Karen Friday, All Rights Reserved

Images are of my barn-wood table, front door, and turkey-shirt I found for my grandson. Image text courtesy of Adobe Spark.

Sometimes I participate in these link ups:

Susan B. Mead/Dance with Jesus, Meghan Weyerbacher/Tea and the Word, Donna Reidland/Soul Surviver, Lyli Dunbar/#FaithOnFire, Crystal Twadell/Fresh Market Friday, Crystal Storms/Heart Encouragement, Meg Gemelli/GRITupAndGo, Suzanne Eller/Living Free, & Married by His Grace/Salt & Light.

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