Now, what do you say?

That’s a question every parent, and grandparent, has asked hundreds (if not thousands) of times. And there’s two probable answers to the question, depending on the circumstance: please or thank you.

With the days growing shorter and football season growing longer, we are getting closer to that most fundamental of American holidays: Thanksgiving. It’s a holiday that goes back nearly 400 years, to the year 1621 and to a place not too far away, Plymouth Massachusetts.

Most of us love the Holiday. For my family, it’s the day that everybody loves to be helping out with – and with 6 kids, that saying something!

Jon Gordon, author of Positive Dog, writes that researchers have found that thankful people are happy people: you can’t be stressed and thankful at the same time. When you are grateful, you also flood your brain and body with natural antidepressants that uplift you rather than the stress hormones that drain you. The more we give thanks, the more positive our basic disposition, the more we see the good in every circumstance. The more we give thanks, the more we find things to be grateful for – it’s a upward spiral.

For Christians, that’s no surprise! The Bible teaches that giving thanks is the most fundamental response to the reality of God. We read in Romans 1 when Paul writes that although all people everywhere know the reality of God, they fail to recognize him and give thanks – and a downward spiral begins. But when someone puts their faith in God when they hear the gospel, and receive by faith the free gift of His forgiveness and grace, an upward spiral begins! And so that’s why the Bible says,

“..give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thess 5:18).

This year at Pilgrim, we’re coming together with members of our community to practice the fundamentals, just as they did so long ago and not so far away in Plymouth.

We invite everyone to come to our Community Thanksgiving Service, Tuesday, November 21st, at 7 pm. The church members, music ministries, and faith group leaders of the United Parish of Lunenburg and Saint Boniface will join as as we gather in the sanctuary together here at PCC.