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The last Thursday of this month our nation will pause and celebrate a national holiday we call Thanksgiving.

And by pause I mean we will run turkey trots, watch turkey parades, eat turkey dinners, cheer on America’s turkey team, then fight turkey crowds to save a few bucks on a bigger TV.

Oh, the joys of Thanksgiving!

Listen.

I’m not opposed to celebrating Thanksgiving.  In fact, it’s my favorite holiday! I love getting together with friends and family. I love watching football. I love the perfect setup of turkey, gravy, dressing, cranberry sauce, and pecan pie!

And I love leftovers!

As you and I celebrate Thanksgiving, there is a tendency to overlook this one very simple element of the day.

We don’t leave it out intentionally. We honestly get so busy enjoying the day that this particular thing can easily get pushed to the side.

Here it is . . .

As you celebrate Thanksgiving, don’t forget to give thanks! 

No, that’s not being redundant. We can get so caught up in celebrating Thanksgiving that we overlook the very simple act of giving thanks!

So . . . 

Do you want a challenge?

Let me encourage you to do one or more of these five challenges on Thanksgiving. Maybe you already do some of these, and that’s great!  Keep it up.

Then again, maybe you are like me and can easily overlook the most essential part of Thanksgiving – giving thanks.

Here are my 5 challenges:

1. Sandwich the Day in Prayer.

The last thing you want to think about on Thanksgiving is another sandwich, but go with me here. Sandwich the day in prayer.

When you first wake up, start the day in prayer. When you go to bed at night, end the day in prayer. Let the first thing you do and the last thing you do be a simple prayer of thanksgiving, thanking God for His innumerable blessings upon your life. There’s something special about having a conversation with God on the bookends of your day.

2. Share on Social.

Go public with your thanksgiving. Share with others a few things you are specifically thankful for, and while you’re at it, make sure they know that you are a believer, and it’s Jesus who changed your life when you surrendered to him. 

Be intentional about directing your thanks to the Lord. It’s one thing to be thankful. It’s another thing to recognize that “every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above” (James 1:17).

3. Make a Private List.

I do believe it’s important that we, as followers of Christ, publicly share with the world the great things the Lord has done in our lives. However, let’s not pass up an opportunity to privately make a list of things we are thankful for. There are some things that are personal between you and God. Use this opportunity to be open and transparent before the Lord.

If you do this, you will find it hard to stop. You may start out aiming for a list of 10-20, but you’ll quickly realize 100-200 is very feasible.

4. Commit to 24 Hours of No Complaining.

This one may be the most challenging. We often don’t realize just how much we complain. Complaining is the fruit of a spoiled root, and as Americans we have been spoiled. We have acquired an attitude of entitlement. I deserve . . .

This is most evident when we complain about something that doesn’t go our way. Try going an entire day without complaining. You may need to recruit someone to help point out when you slip up.

5.  Encourage Someone.

Your words are powerful to a broken world of anxiety-ridden, suicide-considering people. When you encourage someone and point them to the gospel of Jesus, you are speaking life to their soul and possibly saving their life. Call a relative. Text a friend. Message a co-worker.

Let someone in your life know you are thankful for him or her and explain why! 

As you and I celebrate Thanksgiving, let’s not forget to give thanks and love someone who isn’t feeling it this season. Don’t let the most important part of the day get overlooked because of a crazy turkey.

And you don’t have to wait until that Thursday . . . 

Start now!

Copyright © 2021 by Andy Comer @https://antiochgt.com/blog/dont-overlook-one-thing-thanksgiving/ No part of this article may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from Lifeword.org.