GIVING THANKS IN HARD TIMES!

GIVING THANKS IN HARD TIMES!

Hab 3:17-18

17 Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls:

18 Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.

           The original Pilgrims fled to Holland in 1608 and then to America in 1620 because they were suffering persecution and imprisonment in England for their Biblical faith. Their stay in Holland was short because, although they found spiritual liberty there, a disjointed economy failed to provide adequate compensation for their labors, and a degraded and corrupt culture was tempting their children to stray from the faith. We seem to have run out of places to which we may flee.

Determined to protect their families from these spiritual and cultural dangers, the Pilgrims uprooted their community and sailed for a New World in America that offered the promise of both civil and religious liberty. Despite the hardships they encountered in these wanderings, the Pilgrims considered themselves to be “stepping stones” for future generations, whether they lived or died. Their focus was on the future and on faithfulness to God. They trusted God to sustain them in good years and bad.

The Pilgrims set sail for America on September 6, 1620 and were upon the sea for two months. A look at the replica ship now anchored at Plymouth makes one shake his head in amazement. Half of them died in the first winter. In the spring the survivors were surprised to greet an Indian named Samoset who spoke to them in English! He said he had learned the language from fishermen and traders. That summer Samoset and another English speaking native named Squanto taught the Pilgrims how to farm and to make the best use of the land. The harvest of 1621 was so bountiful that they proclaimed a feast of Thanksgiving in December to celebrate along with their Indian friends.

Even as the great Civil War raged, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday in November 1863 “as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our benevolent Father.” He said: “The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God.”

He continued, “No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People.”

Today as you are seated before your feast, and accompanied by your friends and relatives, pause to remember that Thanksgiving was born out of hardship and difficulty.

Much of the content of today’s message comes from an article received from The Christian Law Association to whom I owe both thanks and apologies.

Dear Lord, today I am thankful for an abundance of both supplies and friends. AMEN