Providence Is the Dominion of God - Psalm 106:1

Praise the Lord! Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. - Psalm 106:1
    Today is the day set aside by President Lincoln in 1863 to be  a national day of "Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens." In the words of  Secretary of State William Seward - “No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and voice by the whole American people.” - October 3rd, 1863.
    From the day of the first Thanksgiving by the Pilgrims in 1621 to the present, the intended purpose of this solemn celebration has always been and will always be to thank God for His providence to us. And while we certainly prepare for and work daily for the things we receive to our betterment, the glory and the honor of what we receive goes to God almighty. “The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but deliverance is of the Lord.” - Proverbs 21:31. While we prepare and work we rely on the goodness of God. How many times in our lives has the rain failed to fall? How many times have we fervently prayed for the skies to open up and send down the blessings of our Creator and Sustainer? Man, in his stubborn pride can believe in himself all he wants (the Humanist position). Nothing man can ever do will ever bring the rain! It will not rain until God wills it. Yes, deliverance is of the Lord! This is the essence of God’s “common grace.”
    To deny or ignore or scoff at the Lord’s good and faithful providence is blasphemous and often risks the very wrath of God . What did Lincoln and our predecessors know that we seem to have forgotten? “For she did not know that I gave her grain, new wine, and oil, and multiplied her silver and gold—Which they prepared for Baal.  ‘Therefore I will return and take away My grain in its time and My new wine in its season, and will take back My wool and My linen, given to cover her nakedness.’” - Hosea 2:8-9.  God gives to us and He can take away from us as He pleases. We must remember that all we do or have or are is a gift from God. Our homes, our families, our jobs, our talents, our creativity, our blessings in general all come from a holy, loving, and merciful God without whom we would be crawling around in the dust and the mire along with the worms.  
    God provides for us because He loves us and knows what we need - “Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?” - Matt 6:26.
    When you need something ( I said, “NEED”, not want), petition God in prayer and thanks to fulfill your needs. Pray that your supplication meets His holy will for you. And remember -     “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;” - Philippians 4:6.
    Pray, and thank Him. Never forget to thank God, the Creator and Sustainer of the universe. Thank Him for your circumstance. Thank Him for your children. Thank Him for your spouse. Thank Him for the very air you breathe. Thank Him for every good thing in your life. Veterans, thank Him for bringing you home from foreign wars! First responders, thank Him for bringing you home at the end of your shifts. Recovering addicts, thank Him for bringing you home through your personal hell. Unbelievers, thank Him for the common grace He bestows even upon you. New believers, thank Him for His effectual call!
    If we could but  remember on Thanksgiving and every day of our lives what Paul told the Thessalonians - “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18.
    Have a blessed and a very happy Thanksgiving!