The Thanksgiving Tree - Thanksgiving 2005
The Story of Thanksgiving…
Most of us already know the “official story” of Thanksgiving. Over 350 years ago a group of early settlers called “Pilgrims” landed at Plymouth Rock in Rhode Island. They had a very rough winter, but with the help of several “indigenous peoples” (Indians) who just happened to speak English (another long story), they made it through the winter.
Squanto and Samoset (these two indigenous peoples) eventually introduced Capitan Miles Standish and the other Pilgrims to Massasoit, the “indigenous peoples” leader. That fall the Pilgrims celebrated their first harvest by inviting some of their “indigenous people” friends and their families to a feast of thanksgiving. Turns out that Squanto and Samoset had large families and ninety-one Indians showed up for dinner. In the end it was the Indians who actually brought most of the food for the feast which lasted three days.
Who ever said church people don’t know how to “potluck”? We’ve been doing it for hundreds of years! That was in the June of 1621.
But that wasn’t actually the first Thanksgiving after all. Actually, God’s people had been celebrating their own Thanksgiving for over 3000 years!
Almost 3000 years earlier – God told His people to celebrate Thanksgiving! Look with me at Deuteronomy chapter sixteen:
“Count off seven weeks from the beginning of your grain harvest. Then you must celebrate the Festival of Harvest to honor the LORD your God. Bring him a freewill offering in proportion to the blessings you have received from him. It is a time to celebrate before the LORD your God at the place he chooses for his name to be honored. Celebrate with your whole family, (your sons, your daughters), all your servants, the Levites from your towns, and the foreigners, orphans, and widows who live among you. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt, so be careful to obey all these laws.” Deuteronomy 16:9-12(NLT)
That was 3000 years before the first Colonial Thanksgiving.
God called it the Feast of Weeks and if you notice it involved two key elements – the same elements that are always involved in thanksgiving: thanks and giving.
That’s why we celebrate Thanksgiving. It is a national holiday today, but it has long been a religious, holy day and a command from God for His people.
So why a “Thanksgiving Tree”?
Well, first of all, it looks really cool! And after the service today it will look even better. It will also have a lot of significance once we all finish it this morning.
But a tree represents a lot of important symbols.
A tree represents health and growth. When you see a tree growing you know that it is healthy. When it has a lot of leaves on it’s branches you know that it’s doing well.
A tree also provides protection, shelter, shade. Who doesn’t like to sit under a tree on a warm day or maybe dodge under one during a rain?
And a tree is a resource. You can get nourishment from a tree. You can use it’s wood for many things. And if you treat it right, another tree will grow from the first.
Thanksgiving is like a tree.
People who show genuine thankfulness are healthy people. It’s hard to truly be thankful and depressed at the same time. It’s hard to be self-centered and thankful. Thanksgiving allows us to grow outside of ourselves and appreciate not only what we have, but those who are responsible for what we have. Always remember that everything we have is the result of others, not just ourselves.
There are no “self-made” people!
Thanksgiving is also a source of protection. As we said, it protects us from self-centeredness and depression, but it also protects us from greed and laziness.
And Thanksgiving becomes a real resource in our everyday life. Thanksgiving gives us energy. Thanksgiving gives us a sense of joy. Thanksgiving helps create an attitude of gratitude that heals relationships and bridges to new friendships.
So we have a “Thanksgiving Tree” to remind us that thanksgiving is an attitude that grows, protects and can provide.
Something else about thanksgiving, it involves a to and a with. Thanksgiving must always be directed to someone and thanksgiving always involves others (the with part of thanksgiving).
Most importantly our Thanksgiving should be directed to God.
Isaiah 12:4 says, “Thank the Lord.”
We can and should thank others – but everything, everything, begins with God.
James 1:17 says, “Whatever is good and perfect comes to us from God above…”
He does so much for us…listen to what the Psalmist said in Psalm 103…
“I will bless the Lord and not forget the glorious things he does for me. He forgives all my sins. He heals me. He ransoms me from hell. He surrounds me with loving-kindness and tender mercies. He fills my life with good things!...He revealed his will…He has removed our sins as far away from us as the east is from the west.” Psalm 103:2-12
Our thanksgiving should first and foremost be focused on God, on all that Jesus Christ has done and is doing for us.
But our thanksgiving always involves others. We share our thanksgiving with others. God wants to hear us thank Him, but He also wants to hear us share what He has done with others.
Look back at Isaiah 12:4, “Thank the Lord. Tell the world about His wondrous love and how mighty He is!” (LivingBible)
If we don’t, if you don’t share what God has done in your life, who will?
Deuteronomy 4:9 tells us, “Be very careful never to forget what you have seen God doing for you. May his miracles have a deep and permanent effect upon your lives! Tell your children and your grandchildren about the glorious miracles he did.”
Tell your children and your grandchildren.
Do you know parents have the greatest impact on the spiritual development of their children? When our kids see Jesus Christ in us – that’s when they really believe it!
Thanksgiving is how we share our stories. We live out and share what God is doing in our lives.
This morning we will add to our Thanksgiving Tree.
(The leaves that you already see hanging are from the last two years. I’m looking forward to the day when it takes the whole week to re-hang the leaves from the past years!)
Thanksgiving is not something we should put off – it’s not something we should do only once a year. It’s a daily, moment-by-moment attitude, an attitude of gratitude.
With that said, I want us to take a few minutes this morning to add to the tree.
In your discovery pack is a leaf. Please take out that leaf and grab that pencil while you’re at it.
Now, what I would like you to consider doing this morning is writing a short note to God this morning; a letter of thanksgiving. It might be just a word or line, or maybe a few. You don’t have to write the entire novel today. The idea is to write down the most significant thanksgiving you can think of from this past year. What are you really thankful for this morning.
Then, when you are finished you can simply come and attach it to the tree.
If you would like to share your thought with everyone else, we’ll give you that chance as well. Simply go to the mic and share…
WORSHIP TEAM: “Give Thanks With A Grateful Heart”
Closing: So why show thanksgiving?
If what I shared was not enough to convince you, let me give it one more shot this morning…
There is a great verse tucked near the end of the little letter of Philippians in the New Testament. If you blink you almost miss it, but it gives us a plan for everyday life. It reads:
“4Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! 5Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon. 6Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”
That verse talks about being joyfull, joy-filled and being thankful, thanks-filled. But it also lays out the benefits of being such.
First, thankful people are happy people. “Rejoice” He repeats him self and says it twice. He’s making a point. It’s hard to be down when you are thankful.
Don’t give me that “I’m just thankful to be alive…” grumpiness. When you are thankful, genuinely thankful you have to rejoice.
Thankfulness brings peace: “If you do this, you will experience God’s peace…” it says in verse seven.
When you focus on what God has done and is doing in your life, you have to be thankful and happy.
I know what you’re thinking. “Pastor, you don’t know what’s going on in my life right now.” And I may not, but God does.
That’s why He tells us, “6Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.”
When the tough times come – we talk to God about them. We tell Him what we need and we talk to Him about what He’s already done. It helps us remember that He’s always been there and will always be there !
Thankful people are happy people.
Not only that, but thankful people are practical people!
Look at verse five: “Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon.” I like the way the NLT translates that little word, epieikeia. It’s often translated “gentle”, but the idea is one of self-control directed at others: showing practical-ness, gentleness, consideration in all we do.
When we are thankful, rejoicing in what God is doing in our lives – we are aware that it’s not us and others are involved. That keeps us focused on others and when we focus our gratefulness on others it keeps us connected and down to earth.
We’re also thankful because we know that Jesus is coming again, soon. “Remember, the Lord is coming soon.” We have no idea how long this life we be, so we remain thankful for every day we have and invest each minute wisely!
If I had to pick the attitudes that I believe would help each of us to live happy and really productive lives – thankfulness would be at the top of that list.
“Thank Him for all He as done.”
The greatest thanksgiving of all is to give Jesus Christ your life…
