It's Not Christmas Yet

Praise the LORD! Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!  Psalms 106:1

I am just going to say it. Putting up your Christmas Tree now or any time before Thanksgiving is just wrong. Now I know people love the Christmas season, and I do too, but I really love November and the Thanksgiving season, yet it often gets the short end of the deal.
 
Here is my take on the benefit of waiting to focus on the Christmas season and embracing the Thanksgiving season. We have so much to be thankful for, and yet we often don’t acknowledge it. We live in a great country, state, and community. We have an incredible church family. We have a roof over our head and, for the most part, food to eat. Of course, there are problems within all of these. There are differences in politics and policies in our country and even in local communities. Our church family is certainly not perfect. Our homes may not be what we want, and leftover meatloaf again may not be exactly what we want for supper. However, when we just pause for a bit and try and count our blessings, it makes the struggles a little smaller.

I ask that for the month of November, we look at our blessings through the lens of the Gospel. God does not have to be kind and generous, but He is. He not only provides for our daily needs (Matthew 6:24-34) but also abundantly gives us forgiveness and reconciliation through Christ. I bet if we just wait and focus on being thankful for what we have in Jesus, the Christmas season will be much sweeter. Let us praise the LORD and give thanks for His goodness and steadfast love that endures forever.