We Gather Together: Let's Celebrate Thanksgiving

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! I've seen houses all decked out with their lights, a few inflatables in place being jolly, and believe it or not, a few Christmas Trees have been seen through Family Room Windows.

Did I miss Thanksgiving? Now I realize that getting ready for season is half the fun of Christmas time. I like to get my lists made, my Christmas Cards addressed, and have even been known to listen to a few Christmas songs before December 1st. However, I want to celebrate Thanksgiving before we jump straight into Christmas.

Thanksgiving is too important, too patriotic, too spiritual to be seen only as a day off or a day before the biggest shopping day in the year.

I love Thanksgiving. My family gets together, we have grandparents traipsing across the plains to come, we have traditions, foods that we only have at Thanksgiving, and of course, we have football and shopping this weekend, as well. However, we try to focus on Giving Thanks and on thanking God for his abundant blessings,mercy, and grace.

We all share our "We are Thankful for..." thought around the Thanksgiving Table.

One year our then 3 year old M said she was most thankful for Cheese. Yes, cheese. I think she really was. It was probably the most honest answer ever. She loved cheese.

I love the song "We Gather Together". I love the thought of Pilgrims and Indians sitting across from each other on a cold November day and sharing their bounty and their good will. It gives me hope to think of such grand gestures. I love, that even in times of trial, uncertainty or hardship, these good people gave thanks. They recognized their blessings were from God and thanked Him.

As we approach Thanksgiving, I'm trying to focus my heart on this moment, this season, this feeling of thanks before the hectic days of December are pulling at me.

There is so much to be grateful for this year, so much to pray a prayer of Thanksgiving to God for at this moment; for health and strength and daily bread we praise thy name O God.

We Gather Together Hymn
We gather together to ask the Lord’s blessing;
He chastens and hastens His will to make known.
The wicked oppressing now cease from distressing.
Sing praises to His Name; He forgets not His own.

Beside us to guide us, our God with us joining,
Ordaining, maintaining His kingdom divine;
So from the beginning the fight we were winning;
Thou, Lord, were at our side, all glory be Thine!

We all do extol Thee, Thou Leader triumphant,
And pray that Thou still our Defender will be.
Let Thy congregation escape tribulation;
Thy Name be ever praised!O Lord, make us free!

Let us gather together this year and celebrate the bounty the Lord has provided and not worry so much about the next day, week or month. Thanksgiving deserves it's own celebration. What a blessing it is to honor that day!!