A Thanksgiving Day Message by Shazzar Kallie

"And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful."

Colossians 3:15

Today is Thanksgiving Day. I want to give thanks to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for the precious gift of life. We have so much to be thankful for if simply for the air we breathe, because every breath is a gift from God. When we think about Thanksgiving Day we think about a time to feast with family and friends. It seems like everyone has to have their turkey, stuffing and all the other fixings to stuff themselves until they cannot eat another bite. It is a blessing to be able to have a feast, especially when famine is present in the world, and even in America there are families who do not have enough to eat. When I think of Thanksgiving I think of my source for whom Thanksgiving Day was created for, and that is God Almighty! Everyone knows the story of the Pilgrims who came to America for religious freedom. They would not have survived the New World without the help of the Native Americans who provided food and taught them how to be self-sufficient. Thanksgiving has been celebrated ever since those early years in the 1600s. It is America's official day to give thanks to God, but I find it impossible not to thank God every day for His precious grace and mercy!

In 1789 President George Washington proclaimed the first national Thanksgiving Day as a way to thank God for His many blessings. The great President Abraham Lincoln made Thanksgiving Day a national holiday in November, which has been celebrated annually since 1863. President Lincoln like Washington realized that America was the country she is because of God ("One Nation Under God"), so he had to give thanks where it was due: "They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy." America is the most powerful nation in the world because of our reverence for God. From the Pilgrims who came to America so they could praise God with freedom to the multi-cultural multitudes who have followed, our country is blessed because we know whom we are to be thankful unto for "In God We Trust."

I find myself thanking God many times a day, which starts as soon as I open my eyes and take my first conscious breath in the morning. I thank God for blessing me to see another day and for giving me the precious gift of life. I thank God before I close my eyes in prayer at night for allowing me to make it through another day. I thank God for my trials and tribulations, because I know they will often lead to triumph after faith and perseverance have been implanted in my mind, heart and soul. I thank God for my spirituality. It is a choice to serve Him and many choose not to, but I thank God for instilling the agape love I have always had for Him since I was a child. God is Love and I know I am a child of God because I believe in Love! The world does not have anything to offer that can even compare to the blessings God has in store. I thank the Lord for giving me the strength to do what is right instead, that which is wrong. Through God I know from whom all of my blessings flow!

I thank God for my mentality. I am a very educated person who can be proud to say that I have walked across the stage four different times in college at graduation to receive my earned educational rewards. I thank God for divine wisdom and the knowledge that is learned through experience. I get excited when I realize all the potential for "greatness" that God has given me. But then I realize that potential means I am not doing all that I can with His precious gifts, so I am inspired to be better and do better. I know God will bless me for the World to one day know my name through my gift of literary expression. It is a blessing to have peace of mind, because so many people do not. I know that my faith will conquer any fear, so when I put my mind to accomplishing something my body has to follow, because I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!

I thank God for my physical health. I can say I have never been hospitalized a day in my life unless you count the day when I was born. I have never missed a day of school or work because of sickness. I thank God for the opportunity to be of better health through exercise, eating right and the desire to run competitively again. So many people take their physical health for granted. There is a saying, " I once complained I had no new shoes until I saw the man with no feet to use." I thank God for the gift of sight, the gift of hearing, the gift of touch, the gift of taste, and the gift of smell. You will be surprised at how many millions of people in this country who lack at least one of those gifts many take for granted.

I thank God for my financial state. I am by no means rich, but I thank God that I am not suffering at the poverty level either. It is a blessing to have a job that I can say enables me to at least meet my basic needs and be able to afford many wants (desires). I realize the more I give unto God the more I am blessed. I believe in charity and I strive to share the blessings God has bestowed unto me with others. I do not forget any of my students at Christmas making sure they each get a card, gift and candy. Likewise, I strive to help those who are in need even if it means it will be a sacrifice for me. We owe God at least 10% of our income in tithes; so strive to give it in some way through charity whether it is at church or to the homeless person on the street who needs a meal to eat.

When I think about it, I realize I have so much to be thankful for. I may not be all that I can be, which simply means that God is by no means through with me. When we are faithful over a few, God will make us a ruler over many. What are you thankful for? People should realize that many people do not have it as half as good as they do. Try living in another country besides America and you will be thankful you are an American. When we thank God through our thanksgiving we show we are grateful for His many blessings through grace & mercy and are deserving of more. I know whenever I do something for somebody and they say "thank you" it is the reward in itself, because it shows that I am appreciated, and my charity was not in vain. God wants to be thanked as well, so give thanks, because we have so much to be thankful for!

"Always give thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ."

Ephesians 4:20

God is Love!