Thanksgiving Joy #6

It would be hard for me to express how much I enjoy being with my family for the holiday. I'm also grateful for my sixth Thanksgiving joy.

I'm glad that when all is said and done, and it's time to go home, Ruth is the one who gets in the car with me.

Twitter @john316marshall
www.facebook.com/john316marshall

Thanksgiving Joys #4 and #5

My fourth enjoyment of Thanksgiving revolves around food. I always resolve to eat little, and then I break every resolution I make. Right now I feel bloated, yet content. Is there any pumpkin pie left?

My fifth fun thing is watching football. I watch very little football, but on Thanksgiving Day I want to veg in front of the TV. By the way, I keep the TV on mute so my visiting won't be interrupted.

My Thanksgiving Day interest in football can be traced to my mother-in-law. She was a radical Dallas Cowboys fan. Watching them on Thanksgiving Day was something we always did together. The Cowboys won today on the last play of the game. Mrs Huey would have been proud.

Twitter @john316marshall
www.facebook.com/john316marshall

Thanksgiving Joy #3

A third way I know I'm having a great Thanksgiving is when my muscles ache. Yep. That's right. Pain, in this situation, is good.

My back starts hurting because I sit in the living room recliner, visiting with family, too long. When I finally let the pain drive me to the couch, I stay there till my legs start hurting.

I finally got up for a while this afternoon and walked around the living room a few times to loosen up my muscles. The exertion was helpful, but exhausting. I'm back on the couch again.

Twitter @john316marshall
www.facebook.com/john316marshall

Thanksgiving Joy #2

My second Thanksgiving joy is losing my voice. Yep. That's right. I enjoy talking with family till I go hoarse.

Yesterday I literally wore my voice out, talking with family. By the time I went to bed, my vocal cords were totally exhausted.

But fear not. After a good night's sleep, my voice is healed and ready for another full day of action.

Twitter @john316marshall
www.facebook.com/john316marshall

Thanksgiving Joy #1

There are many things about Thanksgiving I enjoy. One, I am grateful to be reminded how important it is for me to stop my daily actions and give thanks to the One who is the Source of all my blessings.

Herein lies the reason Thanksgiving is being less observed in the USA. In an ever increasingly secular society, fewer and fewer people think there is anyone to thank. If there's no reason to give thanks, there's no need to set aside a day to do it.

Father, forgive us for forgetting You, the fount of all our blessings.

Twitter @john316marshall
www.facebook.com/john316marshall

JFK 48

Where were you 48 years ago today? We who are old enough to remember the day can tell you precisely where we were when we heard about President Kennedy's assassination.

Everything changed that day. It was the coming out party for TV. It was the dominant media outlet from then on. A huge bubble of idealism burst. We felt the communists were the bad guys, and nothing like this could happen to us. Wrong.

In retrospect, this date was only the beginning of chaos. Something was let loose in the American psyche. Soon "the sixties" arrived: The Beatles, Viet Nam protests, race riots, assassinations of Robert Kennedy and Dr King.

Everything seemed to grind on in discord until "the sixties" ended, I believe, with the tragedy at Kent State. It was a tough time. I'd rather not live it again.

Twitter @john316marshall
www.facebook.com/john316marshall

Thanksgiving Breakfast

Tonight my immediate family will gather at the house to celebrate Thanksgiving.  It has always been the tradition among us to observe the holidays early.  This allows the children and their families to go to the in-laws and/or to observe other celebrations they want to be part of on the actual holiday itself.

The menu tonight is a bit odd.  Breakfast food.  Huh?  Everyone said they felt they would have plenty of traditional Thanksgiving food before the holidays were over, so they want to do something different tonight.

I have decided this is an appropriate action on our part.  The Pilgrims ate sausage; no wait, they ate turkey.  Well at least they ate pancakes; oops, they ate hoecakes.

All kidding aside, one important thing we will share with the Pilgrims is hearts thankful for what God has provided us.  We rightly say "God bless America."  It would also be wise to say, "America bless God."  Happy Thanksgiving.  Remember Him for Whom the holiday was established.

Twitter @john316marshall

Facebook  john316marshall

Puzzles

I never remember seeing a puzzle in my house when I was growing up. Never. Not once. Thus the world of puzzles is new to me. I find life puzzling enough without them (pardon the pun).

Ruth buys puzzles for 4-yr-old Lilly Ruth. They started out simple: 48 pieces, lots of colors. As time has passed, Ruth has bought more difficult puzzles: 100 pieces, fewer colors.

I'm going to have a nervous breakdown over these puzzles. My eyes hurt, my head aches, my self esteem plummets as a 4-yr-old works the puzzle faster than I do,

But I do have to admit it is a previous bonding activity. What's my most important advice? Always let your grandchild put in the last piece.

Twitter @john316marshall
www.facebook.com/john316marshall

63 Years

Mom and Dad celebrated their 63rd wedding anniversary yesterday. I asked them what their key to success was. Their first answer was, "I don't know", but then they got on a roll.

Mom said, "Start early (she was 15) and live a long time. Hang in there. Don't give up." Dad said, "Believe in Jesus." Mom agreed.

I felt one more of their insights was noteworthy. They said neither of their families had a history of divorce. It simply wasn't in the family. Insightful.

I'm grateful for Mom and Dad. They have been awesome parents. I pray the Lord will give us many more years together.

Twitter @john316marshall
www.facebook.com/john316marshall

Burmese Heaven

I think I can safely say everyone who attended our joint worship service with the Burmese Church last night received a foretaste of Heaven. When Pastor Ngun spoke of the freedom they did not have, but do have now, we should have stood to sing God Bless America.

We could understand not one word of their baptisms or songs, but their love for Jesus and each other was obvious. The shared Lord's Supper found me in an overwhelming flux of emotions.

Daniel Hood did a great job telling the story of Adoniram Judson, our first USA missionary, who 199 years ago first took the Gospel to Burma. We witnessed last night the ongoing fruits of his labor.

Twitter @john316marshall
www.facebook.com/john316marshall

Pilgrims Anew

Four-year-old Lilly Ruth has been learning about the Pilgrims at preschool this week. On the first day, when her mom, Rebekah Ruth, asked what she had learned, Lilly Ruth replied, "About the programs that came over on the flower boat."

Later in the week I asked Lilly Ruth what she had learned. She said, "The Pilgrims came so long ago that they were called Native Americans." She then asked me if the Indians were good to the Native Americans. When I told her yes, she was pleased.

I told her she would be learning about the Pilgrims her whole life. It was good for me to see the story afresh through Lilly Ruth's eyes. Happy Thanksgiving.

Twitter @john316marshall
www.facebook.com/john316marshall