This just makes no sense to me - Black Friday shopping on Thursday?
Is it really necessary that stores like Target and WalMart have to tempt shoppers to leave their families and friends just to get an earlier start on bargain shopping? What am going to be able to buy on Thursday evening that I can't buy on Friday?
And how about all the folks who will have to cut their holiday short so that they can ring those cash registers?
We Americans sometimes wonder why so many people around the world dislike us so much. We, who have more than about 90% of the people living today, just can't seem to get enough (or so it appears).
Remember when Thanksgiving was a day to switch gears. It was a day we looked forward to. It was an opportunity to spend deep, quality time with family and friends. We caught up with each other. We sat back and enjoyed a good meal. Cousins got to see and play with each other. Some fell asleep on the couch while watching Detroit play somebody in football. And it seemed that saying "goodbye" on Thanksgiving could take forever.
Everything tasted better on Thanksgiving. Turkey, mashed potatoes & gravy and noodles (my Mom's noodles were the best!). And the pies - wow! Nothing beats pie on Thanksgiving.
So let's join the resistance - no shopping this Thursday. Let's use the day for what it was intended - to give thanks to God for His loving kindness and tender mercies. Give thanks for your blessings. Express gratitude for help given during times of sickness and pain. Celebrate the relationships you have with others. Offer praises for the forgiveness and salvation that God has given you through Christ Jesus.
Let's take Thanksgiving back from Target and WalMart and the other greedy merchants who worship at the altar of the $$$sign.
Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, for His mercy endures forever!
