A Sunday School teacher asked her class to make a list of things for which they were thankful. One little boy wrote down that he was thankful for his glasses. The teacher was impressed by that. Some children resent wearing glasses, but here was one was mature enough to see the true value of them and was thankful.
“Johnny,” she said, “I see that you put your glasses down at the head of the list of things for which you are thankful. Is there any special reason?” Johnny answered, “Yes, ma’am. My glasses keep the boys from hitting me and the girls from kissing me.”
This Thanksgiving, we can be thankful for seven things. First, we can be thankful that in early December of 1620, a persecuted religious group we call Pilgrims arrived at the outer banks of Cape Cod, Massachusetts and settled on the mainland at Plymouth on Dec. 26. Half of them died that severe winter from exposure, hunger, and disease, dwindling their numbers to about 50 people.
With the help of Native Americans, in the springtime they learned how to plant crops and hunt wild game. In the fall after harvesting their crops, they set aside a day for the first Thanksgiving feast with their new friends. Let us be thankful for the Pilgrims and all the early settlers who went through great hardship and gave our country the religious bedrock upon which our country is built.
Second, we can be thankful for our founding fathers and mothers. John Adams, signer of the Declaration of Independence, vice president under George Washington and our second president wrote, “Posterity — you will never know how much it has cost my generation to preserve your freedom. I hope you will make good use of it. If you do not, I shall repent in Heaven that I ever took half the Pains to preserve it." What wisdom these men and women had in fighting for and codifying the freedom that we enjoy today.
Third, we can be thankful for a democratic republic under God. Through the right to vote, we have a government that rules by the consent of the governed and for the sake of the governed. It is not majority rule in the sense that minority opinions are oppressed and discriminated against. Every person is equal under the law, with equal liberties. Built into our government are checks and balances between the three branches of government that help to preserve our freedoms. We do not live under a dictator who rules for self-interest and uses force to oppress his opponents. We can be thankful for our form of government.
Fourth, we can be thankful for our prosperity. Our free society, our private ownership of property, our natural resources, our capitalistic form of the economy, and our values based on Christian teachings have produced the richest nation in history. While many are in need, we do better than most nations at caring for the needs of the poor.
Fifth, we can be thankful for the people who have positively influenced our lives. Our lives are shaped by parents, family members, teachers, friends, heroes, and many others, and for them all we are grateful.
Sixth, we can be thankful for God’s gift of salvation. The Father has chosen us to be his children and given us the power to respond to His love through His Son, Jesus. In the Redeemer, we have hope for ourselves, our families, our country, and our world.
Finally, we can be thankful for God’s Church. Our churches are where we receive our spiritual nurture and are provided with opportunities to worship and fellowship with our fellow travelers upon the Christian journey. The Church is the most powerful group in the world at fostering charity, social justice, moral values, and positive change.
Do you remember Johnny Appleseed’s song? It goes like this, “Oh, the Lord is good to me, and so I thank the Lord for giving me the things I need, the sun and the rain and the apple seed. The Lord is good to me.”
This Thanksgiving, we have much for which to be thankful.
Dr. Dan Darby is a retired United Methodist pastor.
