by Greg Mundis

  Thanksgiving On My Mind

Dear Friends:

Thanksgiving is on my mind. It’s November, and I am anticipating having a great meal and being with family and friends the last Thursday of this month. I have done a little bit of reflecting on Thanksgiving, and I would like to share a few random thoughts with you today.

I’d like to begin with a fun piece of trivia; you will find the answer at the end of this Update.  Question—How many turkeys will be eaten this Thanksgiving 2008?

As I reflect on Thanksgiving, of course my mind goes back to the Pilgrims and that very difficult year when they landed in New England and lost about half of the colony in the year 1620. It was in the early spring that the Pilgrims made friendships with the local Indian tribe, and the Indians taught them how to fish, to plant, and to survive in this new environment. That fall, of course, was a time of thanksgiving, because the harvest was so great, and the Pilgrims and the local Indian tribe celebrated for three days and gave thanks for the abundant harvest.

Jump ahead a little over 150 years when, in the Continental Congress in 1777, it was passed there would be a season of thanksgiving in the fall in all 13 colonies. However, history tells us that each colony (and each State afterward) then celebrated at a different date.

A journalist by the name of Sarah Hale began a campaign that culminated in 1863 with Abraham Lincoln declared the last Thursday of November to be the official Thanksgiving Day in the United States.

In 1924, Macys in New York seized the opportunity to use this holiday for advertising and marketing. They also began producing an amazing parade that created an atmosphere of joy and happiness on this special day.

As I reflect on this Thanksgiving, I want to thank the Lord that He is in control of history; He is in control of who we are and what we do; He is the God of history. For whatever His wonderful reasons are, as a sovereign God, He has given us a free will. It is through this free will that we can freely express our gratitude to Him. It is a wonderful time to express our gratitude to Him for what He has done for us individually and as a family.

I wish each of you a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. Do not fail to reflect on the good things that God is doing in your personal life and in your family. Be grateful that we live in the United States; be thankful for freedom we have in our democratic style of life.

Oh, by the way, 45 million turkeys will be eaten this November.

Have a great day. God bless.

Sincerely,

Greg Mundis
AGWM Europe Regional Director

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