The holidays are upon us and the festivities have begun.  We will eat too much this Turkey Day, shop like maniacs until Christmas, and swing into the New Year with resolutions not to eat so much next November and not to spend so much next December.  The sad thing is we will soon forget those resolutions and the cycle will begin again.

Unfortunately, the holiday season has become so commercialized that we have forgotton the true meaning of it all.  Thanksgiving is exactly what it means...giving thanks for the many blessings we have received from God when this country was founded on our faith and trust in Him.  Thankful that we could have the many freedoms we desired because of that faith and trust.  But many of those freedoms have been smothered out over time and the day commercialized in such a way that we have forgotton what it is all about.

Christmas has become even worse because not only has the freedom to celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus been changed from the way it is supposed to be...there has been talk in recent years to eliminate the "Christ" in it.  People who are not CHRISTians and came to this country to enjoy religious freedom are slowly removing our own religious freedoms.  Christmas has become so commercialized that people will get up at the earliest hours to enjoy shopping for the great deals while cussing store associates for not having enough or getting into a fist fight over the last one!  Somewhere they lost the spirit of what it is all about and removing Christ from it eliminates the whole need for the day.

This Thanksgiving Day, be ever thankful for a loving God who gave us His only Son, Jesus on Christmas to die on the cross on Easter to save us from our pitiful selves so that we might have everlasting life.  Instead of getting up early to head out to Wal-Mart to get that new Playstation3 for $400...get up early and head out to a soup kitchen and help serve the homeless and hungry.  Take that $400 and buy Christmas dinner, toys, clothes and such for kids you may have seen in that soup kitchen line.  God will Bless you and the child you bless will be far more grateful for your blessing than the one you would have bought it for.

God has given us so very much to be thankful for and if we can take as much time and money that will be spent this holiday season and put it to use in His work we will find ourselves more even more blessed.  And instead of making resolutions about how much we eat or spend the next holiday season...resolute to adopt a family in need.  Give them something to be thankful for and let them see CHRISTmas in you! 

God Bless!

Psalms 100:4 & John 3:16