Why Should You Be Thankful This Thanksgiving Day?

An American tradition

Thanksgiving Day is an American tradition. Although Canada celebrates its own Thanksgiving Day in October, Thanksgiving Day is tied to American history.

This year, I want to ask what may seem to be an odd question—Why should you be thankful?

I’m not asking this because the year 2020 has been a strange and strained time for all of us, which it has. Each Thanksgiving holiday, many families go around the table to share what they are thankful for. I like this and think it’s a great tradition.

But I want to dig a little deeper for the reason why we are thankful on any day, not just on Thanksgiving.

First, let me remind you of the historical background of America’s tradition of a Thanksgiving Day celebration. We’re told the first Thanksgiving celebration took place in 1621 as a time to give thanks for the harvest the pilgrims enjoyed. I believe the local native Americans were an important part of that first celebration.

Our first president, George Washington, established a national holiday to give thanks in 1789. He probably understood better than anyone the valuable and somewhat miraculous freedom American’s enjoyed as an independent nation. If you’re unfamiliar with early American history, it’s worth looking into.

In the midst of our terrible Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln made a proclamation for the last Thursday in November to be set aside as a national holiday of Thanksgiving on October 3, 1863. This was before his famous Gettysburg Address given at the dedication of the military cemetery at the site of the bloody and violent Battle of Gettysburg that was a turning point in the war.

Much later in our history, President Franklin D Roosevelt signed an act of Congress to set aside the fourth Thursday of November as our national Day of Thanksgiving. This took place in 1942 as America’s role in WWII continued to expand.

Since then, Thanksgiving Day is typically celebrated as a time for reflection and giving thanks around a table of festive foods. Although it may be celebrated in a different way this year, it’s an opportunity to gather with family, close friends, and others. Many communities and organizations provide dinners for those with limited or no resources.

Yes, football, feasting, drinking, and shopping seem to be the focus for many in America, the original intent of a national day of giving thanks is to reflect on the blessings we have in spite of other circumstances.

Perhaps 2020 is a good year to reset our priorities. It’s an understatement to say this year has been a strange and strained time that’s tested us in ways we hope will end sooner than later.

Learning to be thankful by faith

What prompts me to ask, “Why should you be thankful?” is a reminder of a time of testing in my life as the Lord taught me how and why to be thankful regardless of my circumstances.

Susan and I were young expectant parents. We didn’t have much at the time and were beginning to realize the Lord’s calling on our lives to full-time ministry. It was a time of testing to validate my faith so it would be genuine.

Did I trust God for who He is or for other reasons?

I was going through a time of spiritual heaviness. I remember it well but can’t describe it much better than that. It felt like I was in a dark, spiritual cloud.

In the course of my daily Bible reading, I read Psalms 107. It struck a chord in my heart and gave me insight into my need to be thankful for who God is, as well as, what He’s done in my life.

Here’s how Psalms 107 begins—

Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. (NKJV)

After reading this psalm, I expected the heaviness to lift. After all, now I understood why I was going through this dark trial. But the heaviness didn’t lift right away. It was several more days before the dark cloud began to give way.

This was unexpected. It didn’t line up with my previous experience with spiritual trials, nor the testimonies of others who went through a time of trial.

I began to realize a lifelong and valuable lesson. My faith in God, my personal trust in the Lord, could not be genuine if it was based on my feelings and circumstances (Hebrews 11:6). This is important for all believers to understand (I Peter 1:6-9).

I want to share some thoughts on Psalms 107, but before I do—take some time to read (or listen) through this psalm on your own.

A Psalm of thanksgiving

Psalms 107 is a psalm of thanksgiving. It appears to be written after Israel’s 70-year exile to Babylon, perhaps written during the time of Ezra or Nehemiah.

The whole psalm is an exhortation to give thanks to the LORD (YHWH) for His goodness and mercy. The exhortation to be thankful is repeated four more times with reasons why we are to be thankful and how to express our thankfulness (Psalms 107:8, 15, 21, 31).

Although originally written for the nation of Israel, it has a general application for all who would recognize the Lord’s goodness and loving-kindness.

Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! (Psalms 107:8 NKJV)

The first exhortation identifies who is to be thankful—Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy (verse 2).

This can include anyone whom the Lord has rescued and restored from their enemies—whether they are physical or spiritual enemies.

The reason why they are to be thankful is that the Lord has rescued them from the enemy’s power and gathered them from where they were scattered (verses 2-3).

This is a reminder of God’s faithfulness to Israel in their early history, but it can apply to you and me for how the Lord intervened in our lives to rescue us from our lostness.

The second exhortation repeats the same encouragement to be thankful for the Lord’s goodness and mercy with an additional explanation of why we are to be thankful—

'For He satisfies the longing soul, And fills the hungry soul with goodness.' (Psalms 107:9 NKJV)

This reminds me of the beautiful and comforting Psalms 23 written by King David. It also echoes the promise of Jesus as the Bread of Life, His living water, and as the Good Shepherd (John 6:35; 7:37-38; 10:10-11, 14).

The third repeated exhortation is followed by a second reason for us to be thankful—

'For He has broken the gates of bronze, And cut the bars of iron in two.' (Psalms 107:16)

This is a reminder of how the Lord delivered His people from oppression throughout their history, and it is echoed in a prophecy of Isaiah that Jesus declared in the synagogue in His hometown of Nazareth (Luke 4:16-19).

Notice what precedes each of these exhortations—

'Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, And He delivered them out of their distresses.' (Psalms 107:6, 13, 19, 28)

This is a reminder of the Lord’s responsiveness to us when we are distressed and in trouble. The Lord is always available, He hears our prayer, and He will rescue us when we call out to Him.

Following the fourth exhortation (verse 21), we are exhorted how we are to give thanks—

'Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, And declare His works with rejoicing.' (Psalms 107:22)

The idea of giving a sacrifice of thanksgiving and rejoice in the course of everyday life is what connects for me and the dark time of testing I spoke of earlier.

Perhaps this is something relevant for your life today.

What are your present circumstances? What is your state of mind and heart?

If it seems like things in life are closing in on you—call out to the Lord, but first, offer a sacrifice of praise and thankfulness for God’s goodness and mercy (Hebrews 13:15).

After the fourth exhortation to give thanks (verse 31), we are given another way we are to do this—

'Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people, And praise Him in the company of the elders.' (Psalms 107:32)

This reminds me of the importance and value of gathering with other believers to give thanks for the Lord’s goodness, faithfulness, and loving-kindness. We all need to be connected with others who walk in the light of the Lord. Especially when the darkness of the world seems like it’s smothering us.

The remainder of the psalm (verses 33-42) reminds us of the Lord’s sovereignty related to His goodness and mercy.

The last verse gives us an opportunity to reflect on all of the exhortations declared in this psalm. It also proclaims a promise for those of us who observe and take heed to these exhortations.

'Whoever is wise will observe these things, And they will understand the lovingkindness of the Lord .' (Psalms 107:43)

So…

Why are you thankful this Thanksgiving?

Why ought you to be thankful to the Lord every day of your life?

Happy Thanksgiving Day!

I’ve featured two photos taken by my friend Aaron Burden. You can see more of his beautiful and inspiring photos on Unsplash and Instagram. I follow him on Twitter and he and his brothers have a new podcast you might want to check out.