Introduction:

On October 3, 1863 President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed the fourth Thursday of November to be officially “National Thanksgiving Day”. He said in part and I quote…

“We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven. We have been preserved, these many years, in peace and prosperity. But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us; and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. We have become too proud to pray and thank the God that made us! It behooves us, then to humble ourselves before the offended Power, to confess our national sins, and to pray for clemency and forgiveness”.

We are living today in a nation where the populace has forgotten God. It’s is this attitude, that plagues our nation. It has even contamination our Churches. Truly, we don’t need more to be thankful for; we just need to be more thankful.
Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Romans 1:21

Our forefathers who came to this country were God fearing and God honoring people. They acknowledge the hand of divine provident upon them. Just read the Mayflower pack. They were thankful for the blessings of God. Today our schools won’t teach these truths they won’t allow any learning that this nation was rooted in the Judean Christian ethic. In fact it is part of the new cancel culture. It was God who sent the weary settlers an Indian named Squanto who could speak their own language perfectly. Squanto offered to teach the Pilgrims how to survive in this strange new land. God had thoroughly prepared this Indian to be a helper for the suffering settlers. He was not just any Indian he was one send by God….

As a young man, Squanto, was a native of that area, had been captured and taken to England. While there as a slave, he had mastered the English language. He had been freed shortly before the Pilgrims’ voyage and had returned to America to find virtually all of his tribe wiped out by the plague. Despite his former treatment at the hands of the Europeans, Squanto was willing to help the Pilgrims learn to survive in the New World, teaching them where and how to fish and stalk game and which berries were safe to eat.

In the spring of 1621, these Pilgrims barely survived their first long and severe winter. Many did die. What if they all had died… this church may not be here today. The Mayflower landed in Plymouth Rock and abroad that ship was a man by the name of John Alden. William Bradford wrote, in his history Of Plymouth Plantation: “John Alden was hired for a cooper [barrel maker] at Southampton where the ship [Mayflower] supplies. He also was an assistant for the Plymouth colony for many years, and was deputy governor for two years. “John Alden married Priscilla Mullin’s. John and Priscilla Alden probably have the largest number of descendants of any of the Mayflower passengers; among those descendants according to the “Ferris Family Genealogy” was Samuel Waldo.

Squanto also taught the Pilgrims “how to plant the Indians’ winter staple, corn, which Europeans had known nothing about.” That miraculous corn harvest provided the basis for the Pilgrims’ first Thanksgiving, a tradition Americans continue to celebrate. Squanto was welcomed by the Pilgrims at Plymouth, where he continued in his vital role as assistant to the colony. The Pilgrims knew the value of Squanto’s assistance and were careful to give God the glory for sending him to help them. William Bradford writes: “Squanto continued with them and was their interpreter and was a special instrument sent of God for their good beyond their expectation.” They were thankful to God for this special man. True thanksgiving begins with-

I. An Attitude of Gratitude toward God. / Psalm 100

1) True gratitude comes when we realize where we would be without God’s help. Along life’s way God often sends us a special person, mentor, a comforter, consular, counselor, an adviser. Who knows maybe even an angel. Have you taken God time to thank Him for gifted people?
We all too often think in the realm of tangible things and not the spiritual blessings of God.

a) John 3:16 – God gave of His Son.
b) Ephesians 1:13 – God has send you a Comforter -His Holy Spirit -John 14:26
c) Ephesian 4:11- God has special spiritual men. These are the gift persons Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers

A biblical review of the national life of Israel provides abundant proof of just how costly a lack of thankfulness can be. God send a deliverer a special man, Moses. But Israel was not grateful they murmured against Moses and even sought to stone him at the first sign of trouble. We can show our gratitude by thanking God for providing our needs and we can prove our sincerely by going back and giving thanks to those God sent our way. A good attitude toward life begins with gratitude toward God. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.- Col. 3;15

When was the last time you went back and thanked someone from your past? You might want to thank a teacher who helped with your math, or reading. . I witnessed this in school many times in a Catholic school. Students came back and thanked their teachers. Go back and be thankful. Go back to that person, Sunday school teacher, pastor, or Awana worker who cared enough to lead you to Christ and express your thanks.

II Give thanks in Everything (Ephesians 5:20, I Thess. 5:18)
Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

1. Thankfulness is foundational to the Christian life. Thankfulness is a conscious response that comes from looking beyond our blessings to their source – our God. It is the act of expressing specific gratitude to God for the blessings he has bestowed upon us. Thanksgiving is the outward and inward communication of how grateful we are for all the things God has given us. Whether they are spiritual, physical, or material as we grow as Christians we should see a spirit of thanksgiving developing in our lives.

2. The reasons we may find it hard to give thanks are as many as the troubles that strike us each day. Difficulties don’t pause for a Thanksgiving break. There is a way, however, to find reasons to be thankful during even the darkest episodes of life. When the curtain of struggles seems to block out all joy, we can choose to be thankful. Despite our trials, we can give thanks for God’s unfailing. We all understand and appreciate the importance of gratitude. It can radically change relationships. It is Gods’ will to give thanks in “everything”. However we are not much different than the Hebrew people…

Illustration: In some parts of Mexico hot springs and cold springs are found side by side — and because of the convenience of this natural phenomenon the women often bring their laundry and boil their clothes in the hot springs and then rinse them in the cold ones. A tourist, who was watching this procedure, commented to his Mexican friend and guide: “I imagine that they think old Mother Nature is pretty generous to supply clean hot and cold water here side by side for their free use?” The guide replied, “No senor, there is much grumbling because she supplies no soap.” So have you thanked God yet?

III. Practice Thanksgiving as Spiritual Therapy. (Psalms 100:3-4)
1.) Thankfulness is the first step to recovery; it is therapy for the soul. The sooner you can get to being thankful, the sooner you’ll be on the way of knowing what God’s will is! However, we are not very good at saying “Thank you,” are we? We’re like a little boy I heard about. On his return from a birthday party, his mother queried, “Bobby, did you thank the lady for the party?” “Well, I was going to. But a girl ahead of me said, ‘Thank you,’ and the lady told her not to mention it. So I didn’t.”

2.) Seven principles promote thankfulness as good Spiritual therapy:
1. It leads us to knowing what God’s will is and find God’s answer in the trial.
2. It motivates us to look for God’s purpose in our circumstances. Romans 8:28
3. It develops a stronger trust and dependence upon God. Proverbs 3:5, 6
4. It is essential in learning how to rejoice in different circumstance Phil. 4:11-12
5. It focuses our attention upon God rather than our problem and circumstances.
6. It brings a peace that passes all understanding. Phil. 4:7 & Isaiah 26:3 / Isaiah 55:8-9
7. It has a powerful influence on our lives. You gain God’s perspective & drawn closer to Him.

Conclusion:
Luke wrote,” For in him we live, and move, and have our being. We must be thankful unto the God who gave us our being.