Dear Friends,

On this night before Thanksgiving, Karen and I wish you and your family a blessed Thanksgiving Day. We pray that it will be filled with giving thanks for the many things God has provided and that you would activate the attitude of gratitude. At this time in our world there is great stress and distress - international conflicts, national division, family trials, and circumstances that seem to be out of control. And yet, if you will step back and reflect you can find many things to be thankful for. Let me assist you with this…

» We give thanks for our family both near and far.

» We give thanks for the friends that God has brought into our lives.

» We give thanks for the privilege of being your pastor.

» We give thanks that we can call you “friend”.

» We give thanks for the comfort and support that you have provided over this past year.

» We give thanks that we have the freedom to worship together every Lord’s Day.

» We give thanks that Jesus is the Lord of our lives.

» We give thanks that no matter what we may face in the future, we are not alone, we have His presence to guide and direct.

» We give thanks that we have His Word to remind us of what we can be thankful for…

Psalm 100:4-5, Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever.

Psalm 111:1-3, Praise the Lord! I will thank the Lord with all my heart as I meet with his godly people. How amazing are the deeds of the Lord! All who delight in him should ponder them. Everything he does reveals his glory and majesty. His righteousness never fails.

Psalm 118:1, Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

A Final Thought…

“Savor” this Thanksgiving Day. To savor something is to take time to enjoy something so much that you want it to last forever. So for this Thanksgiving day…

Savor the sounds. The sounds of conversation and fellowship that we experience around the table.

Savor the smells. Of cooked turkey, dressing, bread, desserts and pumpkin pie.

Savor the sights. Viewing each person as God does. A person of value, a person of worth, a person who is a part of God’s family.

Savor the season. The season of gratitude, of giving thanks in spite of our circumstances.

Join Karen and I as we savor “the moment”. That we are “moment-by-moment’ people who receive every moment of every day as a gift from our Lord. We are truly blessed.

Happy Thanksgiving!