What was Thanksgiving like this year? What did it reveal? What was the focus? What did we ignore? What got left off?

Thanksgiving is a time to be thankful. But what were we thankful for? Our abundance?

There was so much food and so much effort was poured into providing it. We gathered together, or as many of us as could. We joked around. Played games that revealed we probably watched too much tv.

But I wonder. Was there any mention of our historical legacy of the Pilgrims? Their thanksgiving wasn’t about abundance. For over half their numbers had died due to the lack of food and previous winter weather extremes. But they had survived that winter. The Wampanoag Indians had become their friends and taught them techniques on how to increase their harvest. They had known the faithful presence of God rescuing them from destruction. And they were thankful for God’s provision and deliverance.

Why would we want to be thankful for the difficult times our families might be experiencing? Why would God tell us to be thankful in all things because this is His will concerning us? It’s easy to be thankful for our abundance. But being thankful for the difficult times isn’t. Think about what we learn from surviving the difficult times though. Things like endurance, perseverance, character, and a deeper relationship with God and with those around us. Particularly in our family.

Focusing on our abundance promotes self centeredness, if we leave God out of it. And even then the focus tends to be more on ourselves than God. But when we focus on being thankful even when things aren’t so good, that turns the focus to God. We get glimpses of just how loving, how faithful and how powerful our God is.

Now that Thanksgiving is but a memory, let’s not allow our material blessings to overshadow our spiritual needs.