Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor; and Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me to recommend to the people of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:
Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted’ for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and, in general, for all the great and various favors which He has been pleased to confer upon us.
And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions; to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have show kindness to us), and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be best.
Given under my hand, at the city of New York, the 3d day of October, A.D. 1789.
Showing posts with label Thanksgiving. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Thanksgiving. Show all posts
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
“The pilgrims made seven times more graves than huts... nevertheless, set aside a day of thanksgiving.”
H. W. Westermayer
This kind of stuff just drives Dawkins to distraction. Because he doesn’t know the goodness of God, the peace of God, the mercy and grace and forgiveness of God, Dawkins simply cannot comprehend how anyone wouldn’t rage and tantrum at Creator God like little atheists do when they don’t get their way; like the atheist Richard Dawkins does when he doesn’t get his way.
H. W. Westermayer
This kind of stuff just drives Dawkins to distraction. Because he doesn’t know the goodness of God, the peace of God, the mercy and grace and forgiveness of God, Dawkins simply cannot comprehend how anyone wouldn’t rage and tantrum at Creator God like little atheists do when they don’t get their way; like the atheist Richard Dawkins does when he doesn’t get his way.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Are you Thankful? Or are you an atheist?
In Canada we’ve reached that time of year again where for Christians at least we take part in a special celebration for something that we do on a smaller scale everyday. Specifically, we thank our Lord and our Creator for His physical, emotional and spiritual blessings. Happy Thanksgiving!
It’s also the time of year when atheists pretend that they have something to be thankful or grateful for. That of course is ridiculous. Atheists can no more be logically thankful for what they have "received" than a worm can dance a jig. At best they can feel very, very lucky. And if any atheist was actually able to comprehend the odds against them being here by accident, they would feel very lucky indeed. No, according to atheism, any given individual is nothing more than the chance result of one person’s selfish genes forcing h/her to successfully mate with another phenotype of the same species. If the result of the mating is able to use a computer, chances are there were no extraordinary mutations during the process.
For the rest of us, there truly are marvels bestowed upon us that we gratefully receive day in and day out. The greatest marvel of all that is given to us free of charge, with no strings attached, is the Love of Creator God that resulted in the provision of the salvation and rescue for our souls.
“But in our eyes there was no attractiveness at all, nothing to make us want to be around Him.
We despised Him and rejected Him - He was known as a man of sorrows, well acquainted with bitterest grief.
We turned our backs on Him and looked the other way when He went by.
He was despised and we didn’t care.
Yet it was our grief that He carried, It was our sorrows that weighed Him down. He lived this earthly life so that He knows exactly what we’re going through. We thought that He was just another man, a mere mortal struggling with the sorrows and tragedies of life.
Instead He was being wounded and bruised for our sins. He was tortured to death so that we might have peace; He was lashed and whipped and crucified so that we could be healed!
He never did anything to deserve the punishment that came upon Him. All He did was love and encourage others to do the same. Instead, we are the ones who strayed into danger. We are the ones who left God’s paths to follow our own way. We are the ones who are prone to wander.
Yet God’s plan, from before the creation of the universe was to lay on Jesus, who was God in human form, the guilt and sins of every one of us.
He was oppressed and He was afflicted yet He never said a word. That should have opened our eyes to the fact that something special was happening. An innocent Man, silently and without defence was allowing others, us, to have Him executed. Jesus stood silent before the ones condemning Him and He allowed Himself to be tortured and killed. Thousands of years before this took place, it was prophesied that Jesus’ sole purpose for coming to earth was to take the penalty of our sins upon Himself so that we, if we so choose, do not have to be forever separated from eternal Love.
From prison and trial they led Him away to His death. But no one among the people of that day realised it was their sins and ours that He was dying for - that He was suffering their punishment on their and our behalf.
This was Jesus’ plan for Himself from before the founding of the world. It was God’s plan to bruise Him and fill Him with grief. By making His soul as an offering for sin, He rescued a multitude of people, too many to count. Because He lives again, God’s program prospers in Jesus’ hands. And because He sees all that is accomplished by the anguish of His soul, He is satisfied with His perfect plan for our salvation.
Through this plan, Jesus makes it possible for billions and billions of people to be counted righteous before God, for He carries the punishment for all their sins. Therefore I will give Him the honours of One who is mighty and great, because He has poured out His soul, even unto death. He did this while we were still His enemies. But oh how few have believe it. Oh how few have listened.
Isaiah 53.
“Thank you Lord for saving my soul. Thank you Lord for making me whole. Thank you Lord for giving to me, your great salvation so full and free.”
It’s also the time of year when atheists pretend that they have something to be thankful or grateful for. That of course is ridiculous. Atheists can no more be logically thankful for what they have "received" than a worm can dance a jig. At best they can feel very, very lucky. And if any atheist was actually able to comprehend the odds against them being here by accident, they would feel very lucky indeed. No, according to atheism, any given individual is nothing more than the chance result of one person’s selfish genes forcing h/her to successfully mate with another phenotype of the same species. If the result of the mating is able to use a computer, chances are there were no extraordinary mutations during the process.
For the rest of us, there truly are marvels bestowed upon us that we gratefully receive day in and day out. The greatest marvel of all that is given to us free of charge, with no strings attached, is the Love of Creator God that resulted in the provision of the salvation and rescue for our souls.
“But in our eyes there was no attractiveness at all, nothing to make us want to be around Him.
We despised Him and rejected Him - He was known as a man of sorrows, well acquainted with bitterest grief.
We turned our backs on Him and looked the other way when He went by.
He was despised and we didn’t care.
Yet it was our grief that He carried, It was our sorrows that weighed Him down. He lived this earthly life so that He knows exactly what we’re going through. We thought that He was just another man, a mere mortal struggling with the sorrows and tragedies of life.
Instead He was being wounded and bruised for our sins. He was tortured to death so that we might have peace; He was lashed and whipped and crucified so that we could be healed!
He never did anything to deserve the punishment that came upon Him. All He did was love and encourage others to do the same. Instead, we are the ones who strayed into danger. We are the ones who left God’s paths to follow our own way. We are the ones who are prone to wander.
Yet God’s plan, from before the creation of the universe was to lay on Jesus, who was God in human form, the guilt and sins of every one of us.
He was oppressed and He was afflicted yet He never said a word. That should have opened our eyes to the fact that something special was happening. An innocent Man, silently and without defence was allowing others, us, to have Him executed. Jesus stood silent before the ones condemning Him and He allowed Himself to be tortured and killed. Thousands of years before this took place, it was prophesied that Jesus’ sole purpose for coming to earth was to take the penalty of our sins upon Himself so that we, if we so choose, do not have to be forever separated from eternal Love.
From prison and trial they led Him away to His death. But no one among the people of that day realised it was their sins and ours that He was dying for - that He was suffering their punishment on their and our behalf.
This was Jesus’ plan for Himself from before the founding of the world. It was God’s plan to bruise Him and fill Him with grief. By making His soul as an offering for sin, He rescued a multitude of people, too many to count. Because He lives again, God’s program prospers in Jesus’ hands. And because He sees all that is accomplished by the anguish of His soul, He is satisfied with His perfect plan for our salvation.
Through this plan, Jesus makes it possible for billions and billions of people to be counted righteous before God, for He carries the punishment for all their sins. Therefore I will give Him the honours of One who is mighty and great, because He has poured out His soul, even unto death. He did this while we were still His enemies. But oh how few have believe it. Oh how few have listened.
Isaiah 53.
“Thank you Lord for saving my soul. Thank you Lord for making me whole. Thank you Lord for giving to me, your great salvation so full and free.”
Thursday, October 4, 2007
Thanksgiving
. What a wonderful thing it is to have Someone to thank when one is feeling grateful.
. What a wonderful thing it is to be loved.
. What a wonderful thing it is to be loved by Someone who knows all my faults, my weaknesses and my failures.
. What a wonderful thing it is to be loved and cared for by Jesus, who knows not just the sins of my past, but the sins of my future as well.
That Jesus is my friend is something that can only cause a sense of thankfulness.
. What a wonderful thing it is to be accepted as I am, but loved enough to not be left that way.
. What a wonderful thing it is to know that Jesus will not walk away or give up on me when I repeatedly disappoint Him.
. What a wonderful thing it is to know that Jesus is willing to lead me back to the right path even though I continually choose to go down the wrong path.
. What a wonderful thing it is to know that God died for me, despite my life of lies, insensitivity, pride, lust and anger.
. What a wonderful thing it is to know that God died for me precisely BECAUSE of those things.
I am so thankful to God for His creation, for my marriage, for my family, for my health, for all His material provisions, for joy and for a deep abiding sense of peace.
Thank you Lord God, my Saviour, Redeemer, Counsellor and Friend.
. What a wonderful thing it is to be loved.
. What a wonderful thing it is to be loved by Someone who knows all my faults, my weaknesses and my failures.
. What a wonderful thing it is to be loved and cared for by Jesus, who knows not just the sins of my past, but the sins of my future as well.
That Jesus is my friend is something that can only cause a sense of thankfulness.
. What a wonderful thing it is to be accepted as I am, but loved enough to not be left that way.
. What a wonderful thing it is to know that Jesus will not walk away or give up on me when I repeatedly disappoint Him.
. What a wonderful thing it is to know that Jesus is willing to lead me back to the right path even though I continually choose to go down the wrong path.
. What a wonderful thing it is to know that God died for me, despite my life of lies, insensitivity, pride, lust and anger.
. What a wonderful thing it is to know that God died for me precisely BECAUSE of those things.
I am so thankful to God for His creation, for my marriage, for my family, for my health, for all His material provisions, for joy and for a deep abiding sense of peace.
Thank you Lord God, my Saviour, Redeemer, Counsellor and Friend.
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