Thanksgiving (religious)
by Bruce Wright
What does Thanksgiving mean to
you? I hear one boy say, "It
means a big dinner." I think we all agree with him.
Who does not welcome and enjoy a good dinner! I hear Mary
say, "Thanksgiving means a day off from school." I
guess you are right too. School is not such a charming
place that girls and boys are unwilling to have an occasional
holiday.
Now I am going to ask some of
the older people what the day means to them. There is
a young woman. She is a stenographer. She says, "Thanksgiving
means a day away from the office. I am at the office
every day except Sunday, and I do appreciate, now and
then, a day that is really my own." Yonder is a
traveling salesman. What does Thanksgiving mean to you?
He says, "It means a day at home. Last
year I spent one hundred and sixty-nine nights away from
home. I have three children. I should like to see them
every day. There are times when many days pass and I do
not see them. Thanksgiving week I plan to be at home."
There are others I could ask. Each has his answer. But
Thanksgiving has a special meaning for us. It is the Harvest
time. I have here an apple. Isn't this a beautiful apple?
What color! Who mixed the paints, who handled the brush
to give such color to this apple? God. He, in his infinite
love and wisdom, has provided, through the unfailing laws
of nature, for the growth, sweetness, coloring and beautifying
of all the products of the fields. This apple is but one
of many kinds of fruits.
Praise, then, is the great meaning of Thanksgiving. God,
our heavenly Father, sends us every good gift. From his
bountiful hand come our daily and nightly mercies. We should
praise him every day. But the day for the united chorus
of praise is Thanksgiving.
MEMORY VERSE, Psalm 150: 6
"Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord.
Praise ye the Lord."
MEMORY HYMN
"Come, ye thankful people, come."
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