Sometimes I’ve wondered, If I were a Pilgrim, would I have celebrated Thanksgiving? Perhaps after all of the hardships enduring a brutal winter, burying so many family and loved ones, and struggling just to survive, I’m not sure that I would have thought of setting aside three days to give—of all things—thanks. 

But I’ve been thinking quite a bit about the pilgrims lately. Because if they could institute Thanksgiving 1621, surely we can celebrate Thanksgiving 2020. 

This year has been challenging. It has held losses for many of us—financial, relational, physical, and even emotional. 

But has our year not held blessings as well? Has it truly been harder than that first Thanksgiving when bereaved Pilgrims (families who had dug seven times more graves than they built huts) gathered with their Native American benefactors and together gave thanks to God who preserved and provided for them?  Continue reading →