Last week I posted about how thankful I was for my tongue . And as we prepare to eat all the wonderful food for Thanksgiving, I am doubly thankful for my tongue and my sense of taste. Today I am also thankful for my sense of smell! It seems to me that one of the best parts of Thanksgiving is all the wonderful smells of pies baking, turkey roasting, the aroma of the sage, celery and onions of stuffing/dressing baking, permeating the house with delectable fragrances that make our mouths water and our tummies start growling...
We are not going to have our traditional turkey dinner on Thanksgiving Day this year due to family scheduling...our big gathering will actually be on Saturday. But, in keeping with the season, we will have pumpkin pies and apple pie to go along with our small family dinner tomorrow. I just couldn't resist baking these pies so that I could smell and taste the flavors of the season.
(apple pie and pinwheels from left over crust baking in the oven)
Little by little the Thanksgiving decorations are coming out of hiding and standing in their places in preparation for the celebration...
The Pilgrims have come prepared for the feast...
And these prayerful children and parents are giving thanks for all that God has provided...
The Little Pilgrim Shakers and friends are all lined up and are ready to be filled with salt and pepper and placed on the tables...
I love this little needlepoint picture my sister Doris made for me way back in 1978! That reminds me of our table grace we used to say as children...
Yes, as we prepare for the big feast we pause to reflect on our many blessings...so many I can't count them. This year we will welcome a new member to our family table...our new daughter in law Rose! And we will miss our sweet "Nanny Steiner" at the table, who is living in a nursing home, but is thankfully in good spirits and good health...just not able to travel anymore.
We've had a wonderful year with good health and answered prayers. The Psalmist sums up pretty well what we should be saying and feeling on this Thanksgiving Day.
Psalm 107:1-2, 8-9
1. "Oh, give thanks to the Lord,
for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.
2. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy."
8. "Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord
for His goodness,
and for His wonderful works to the children of men!
9. For He satisfies the longing soul,
and fills the hungry soul with goodness."
Indeed, God has redeemed and protected us from the hand of the enemy...and He truly satisfies the longing soul...and fills the hungry soul with goodness...
It is my prayer that you and your family and friends will have a day of great blessing and joy as you gather together and remember God's "wonderful works to the children of men." Even when we are having difficult times, there is ALWAYS something to be thankful for.
The last verse (43) of Psalm 107 says:
"Whoever is wise will observe these things,
and they will understand the lovingkindness
of the Lord."
Amen!
Happy Thanksgiving to all,
and to all a "good night".
