Wednesday, November 21, 2018

A Day of Thanks, But Who Do We Thank?



Thanksgiving Day 2018.  We are only three short years away from the 400th anniversary of the Thanksgiving celebration on which those that followed are modeled after.  In the fall of 1621, 53 Pilgrims celebrated their first harvest in the New World, joined by about 90 Native Americans. Soon after the birth of the United States, our first President, George Washington, declared a “National Day of Thanksgiving and Praise.”  Though various states had official “Thanksgiving” proclamations and holidays set aside at different times, it was not until Abraham Lincoln declared a “National Day of Thanksgiving” in the midst of the Civil War, that it became widely popular.  Finally, in 1941 Congress made it official by way of legislation declaring Thanksgiving as a National holiday.

While the Thanksgiving meal has always been a major focal point of the day, in some ways even that misses the original point.  For some, the emphasis is on stuffing the bird and then stuffing themselves, with nary a thought to anything else, unless it be football and the shopping binge to follow.  But for others, a comely tradition has developed in which each one gathered at the table tells of something they are thankful for. A fine method of focusing attention on our blessed condition to be sure, but still somewhat prone to missing the point. 

If we are giving thanks, to who or what are we doing so?  In this increasingly secular society in which we live, the question is not rhetorical.  So, who do you thank on this Thanksgiving Day? 
If you consider yourself an atheist, sharing the worldview of famous atheist Richard Dawkins, then you might be thankful to the universe which he describes as having “… no design, no purpose, no evil and no good, nothing but blind pitiless indifference.”  If you count yourself among these, then God calls you a fool (Psalm 14:1 among other places) and It would seem pointless for you to be thankful.

Or perhaps you offer your thanks to “mother earth” for the bounty she has bestowed upon you.  Do you think the earth (who, I hate to break it to you, is not your mother) hears and accepts your praises? Thanking a mute idol puts you in little better position than the one who rejects the knowledge of a Sovereign Creator altogether (Romans 1:18-25). In fact, that earns you the same title of fool (God’s description, not mine).

But, you say, can’t a person just be thankful for things without directing that thankfulness toward a particular being or object?  I suppose, but it is an exercise in empty discourse. Words of thanks aimed to no one, in praise of no one, and that give glory to no one, is the epitome of mouthing words but saying nothing.

So, this Thanksgiving Day, won’t you give your thanks specifically to the LORD God in Heaven, who has blessed you with life, liberty and sustenance; the One who created the world and all that is in it, which you are able to enjoy each day?

Friday, November 16, 2018

Sickness on Parade

This is really disturbing, and yet, unless you prefer to stroll along in naivety, aka blissful ignorance, it is worth watching.  Every man of good conscience (a species in short supply today) is already aware that recently America has been on the path of attempting to overtake Sodom and Gomorrah on God’s all time top ten list of places that deserve his wrath to rain down upon, but this may reveal that you still have been underestimating the level of depravity.

WARNING:  Some of the footage presented in this video is not for the faint of heart. I feel confident that said footage was included not merely for shock value (though it is shocking) but rather as a defibrillator to the American conscience. I WISH that it could be simply ignored until it goes away, but it seems to be growing like a cancer, and I am not sure that this cancer is other than of the terminal variety.  But, also like cancer or heart disease, it is probably better to be aware than to continue imagining that all is well with the world.

Top 5 Ways Leftists Sexualize Kids



Incidentally, its interesting that the conclusion reached in this commentary are eerily similar to those I recently presented in post titled "Slippery Slopes and the Letter P".