Why Thanksgiving is special to me
Of all the holidays we celebrate during the year, Thanksgiving Day is probably the most special one for me.
In a way, it's kind of unfortunate that we need to set aside a particular day to remind us to do something we ought to be doing every day anyway, but at least if nothing else, the thought will enter our minds for at least one day during the year.
Now don't misunderstand, I love Christmas, particularly when it's centered on celebrating Christ. And for the same reason, I also enjoy Easter. And Independence Day, Memorial Day, and Veterans' Day all serve to summon the requisite feelings of celebrating the freedoms and lifestyle and country that I enjoy. Even Labor Day is a day where I can pause to celebrate a segment of our population that is the backbone of our society.
But Thanksgiving brings forth thoughts and feelings inside me that ought to be there every day, and unfortunbately, too often aren't.
For it's easy to point out what we lack in life and what we wish we had but don't...we do it to some degree every day. But if we just stop a moment and take a good look around us, we soon realize what we have, and just how precious that which we have actually is. And if we look upon it long enough, we realize that we don't have it half as bad as we think. And for that good which we have, we ought to be thankful for it.
For many years, I did the regular talk show on KMJ on Thanksgiving Day(and the other holidays as well), and I tried to stress that concept to our vast listening audience across Central California. In the process, I tried to demonstrate that it wasn't that hard to be thankful, IF we really wanted to be.
For if we made up our minds to do so, we could focus on our blessings as I described above, and maintain that attitude for an entire day, if we so chose.
And if we could do it for one whole day, why not another whole day? And if for two whole days, why not an entire week? And if we could do it for a week, why not keep it going for a month? You get where I'm going with this, don't you?
The point is, we COULD be thankful every day if we chose, and not just one day in late November, a month before Christmas...but every single day we awaken each morning.
And why not? The feeling we have when we do is a lot better one than the one we have when we're kvetching and moaning about our disappiontments and failures. And from what we can understand of God through a careful reading of the Bible, why would we not WANT to feel thankful every day?
So I hope all of you feel especially thankful about how you're blessed on this Thanksgiving day. And I want to challenge you all to keep that feeling going for as many days in a row that you can. I think it will help you to enjoy life more.
You might find that a lot of the things you used to get so easily annoyed over will disappear, replaced by a feeling of faith and confidence that will enable you to deal with just about everything life can throw at you.
Try it...and let me know what happens!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Posted on Nov 22, 2007 - 02:04 AM | [0]
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