The first Thanksgiving celebration was the Lord’s last supper with Jesus and his twelve disciples in Jerusalem. What a glorious time of fellowship! God calls us blessed! “Blessed are your eyes because they see and your ears because they hear.” Matthew 13:16
Texans celebrated the first Thanksgiving according to a 1992 resolution passed by the Texas Legislature. It was held in North America on April 30, 1598, near El Paso, Texas. Thanksgiving day
is one of the most precious holidays we have been given. In God’s Word, the Holy Bible, He assures us that we have salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.
The apostle Paul writes us in Ephesians 2:8-9 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through
faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works so that no one can boast.”
Wow, isn’t this something to be thankful for, along with the Holy Sacrament of Communion, when
we remember Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross for each of us? Today, when we understand all that we must be thankful for, we can enjoy Thanksgiving with even more appreciation.
On October 3, 1863, our 16th president, Abraham Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday of each November to be Thanksgiving Day. It is a time of joy to be with family and friends, sharing gratitude for God’s blessings and abundance. Thanksgiving is a bit more than that for a rodeo cowboy like me. Every time I can walk away from a near-death disaster from hanging up, or a crazy bull, or a wild bronc that fell or rolled over on me, I am saved and will live another day to be thankful for the life my Lord has given me!
