Once Upon a Time: A Thanksgiving Story

Thursday, November 21, 2013 Posted by Debbie Legg

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Once upon a time, in the country of England, there was a group of people who were fed up.  They were sick and tired of the governing body telling them how they could and could not worship God, so they moved to Holland.

Holland was alright, but it took its toll on their kids.  They decided to try again, this time in a land far, far away.  It took a treacherous 66 day voyage to get there.  Leaving in September, they arrived in November.  

(If you know anything about New England winters, you know they’d have been better off landing in Florida.  To make matters worse, all the leaves had likely fallen off the trees already, so it’s not like it was even pretty to look at.)

Most of these brave souls stayed aboard ship through the brutal winter.  By March, of the 110 Pilgrims and crew that set out, less than 50 survived.

But, on March 16 of 1621, an Indian named Samoset walked into the encampment, scaring the bejeebers out everyone until, in ENGLISH, he said, “Welcome!”  The next day he brought back another Indian, named Squanto, who knew English even better. 

Squanto taught them how to make the most of the land and its produce.  They had a great harvest the next autumn (and got to see the leaves change), and had a great celebration with their Indian friends.

And they all lived happily ever after…at least for a while.

Because that’s real life, right?  It’s good and bad.  Up and down.  Blessing and cursing.  And God is there through it all.

God kept them afloat across the sea, protected them from total annihilation through the winter, and provided the help they needed exactly when they needed it, and in their own language.  He was with them, providing for them, long before they left England.  He was there in the cold, the sorrow, the hunger, and pain.  And He rejoiced and celebrated with them in their abundant blessing. 
    

He is always with us (Matt 28:20), meeting all our needs (Phil 4:19), whether it's 1621 or 2013.

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