Give Thanks…to Whom?

I grew up in a Christian home going to church every Sunday and being taught who God is and what He is like. I responded to Christ in faith and became a Christian when I was nine years old.

The Lord has been a part of my life throughout. Thanksgiving is an opportunity for me and my family to intentionally say Thank You to the One who deserves all of my thanks and praise.

But, I’ve always wondered about folks who do not have that kind of experience. What do people who do not believe in God or worship and serve Him do on Thanksgiving? When the meal is set on the table and everyone gathers to enjoy the feast and festivities, what happens then?

There is that pregnant pause, that uncomfortable moment when everyone knows that on “Thanksgiving Day” we should be giving thanks. What do those who do not believe in God do then?

Do they give thanks to themselves? “I’ve worked hard all year and have brought home a bountiful crop of paychecks and material goods and on this Thanksgiving, I say thanks to me.” That sounds kind of self-centered and egotistical, don’t you think?

Or, “Our family has been incredibly lucky this year and as we feast on the spoils of that luck we want to pause and say thanks to lady luck who made all this happen.” That sounds a little impersonal giving thanks to an inanimate, non-living concept of the luck of the draw.

Or, “On this Thanksgiving we will do something else besides give thanks. We will eat great food. But not say thanks for it. We will enjoy family and friends. But not say thanks for them. We will sit in our homes with our cars in the drive and our closets full of clothes. But we will not say thanks.”

That sounds hollow. It is empty of meaning and void of anything that rings true.

If we are truly saying thanks, we must say thanks to someone. According to the Bible, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17, NIV). If everything comes from God, isn’t it most appropriate to say thanks to God?

I think it seems most appropriate to live out our Thanksgiving Day by doing this: “Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations” (Psalm 100:4-5, NIV).

This upcoming Thanksgiving Day, let us give thanks to the One who deserves it. Look around you and see how the Lord has blessed. Even in the storms of life, He can bless you with the strength to make it through.

I pray that God will bless you and care for you. And, I pray that you will give Him the thanks He deserves. Give Thanks!