GIVE THANKS

Originally posted on December 3, 2013

Note:  I wrote this in December 2013.  I thought things were bad then.  If anything, it is even worse now.  Abraham Lincoln reminded us that there is always a good reason to give thanks, we just need to pay attention.

Abraham Lincoln made Thanksgiving a national holiday.  He did this in the fall of 1863, when things were still pretty grim.  The Union Army had defeated the Confederates at the Battle of Gettysburg, but then the Confederate Army got away, again.  There was no evidence that the bloody civil war was about to end anytime soon.  So I had to ask, why was Lincoln so thankful?  He certainly wasn’t riding high politically.  Lincoln was facing opposition in both parties.  About the only thing people agreed on was that Lincoln was doing a lousy job as President.  He was so unpopular that he almost wasn’t even invited to speak at Gettysburg.  At the most he was expected to say a few, meaningless words.  Lincoln was still looking for a general who could lead the Union to victory.  So far, every General he had chosen was a miserable failure.  Even when the Union won a battle, the loss of life on both sides was beyond horrific.  Yet, Lincoln was grateful.  Following is the text of that Thanksgiving proclamation:

http://history1800s.about.com/od/abrahamlincoln/a/Lincoln-Thanksgiving-proclam.htm

Lincoln was thankful that the carnage of the civil war was unable to destroy the bountiful crops or the healthful skies.  He was grateful that no foreign country took advantage of our civil war to attack us.  He was thankful that the country continued to grow both in wealth and population and even the bloody civil war could not change that.  Lincoln recognized that these were unearned gifts from almighty God.

No human counsel hath devised, nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercys. 

It is so easy to point out everything that is wrong in the world today.  Only a naïve liberal fool would think that things are going well.  Pessimists are wondering how this country can even recover.  Our economy is pathetic.  We have become the laughingstock of the world.  The problems are very obvious and all too real.  But ultimately, God is still in control and what really matters will continue to matter tomorrow, the day after tomorrow and forever.  Our fields are indeed bountiful.  We continue to find the natural resources we need.  Men and women continue to marry, they continue to have children and they continue to raise families.  No government has ever been able to stop that.  While the world is truly a dangerous place, we live in a remarkably free society with a standard of living unimaginable in much of the world.  We are truly blessed.

Governments come and governments go.  No government is as strong as they think.   Good governments aren’t as great as we think and terrible governments aren’t as powerful as they seem.  All political power is fleeting.  The Bible reminds us that pride goes before a fall and a haughty spirit before destruction.  It was true in the past.  It will be true in the future.  It is true now.  It is true when Conservatives are in power and it is true when Liberals are in power.

For this reason, I choose to be thankful.  I am thankful that the things that really matter are not subject to the whims of mortal man.  I am thankful that God is still on the throne and the future continues to look bright and promising.  Give thanks for what really matters.  The rest is just temporary anyway.

TDM