“Although we all know
that God is always with us to guide us throughout our lives and for that we are
all thankful to Him. But the Thanksgiving Day is meant to inspire all of us to
remember the Lord and give Him thanks for all that He has done for us. We thank
Him for the sweet family, for the delicious dinner, for the turkey and for all
other things that He has blessed us with. This 'giving thanks to the Lord' is
the very spirit of the thanksgiving celebrations. God has always been there for
us and on the Thanksgiving Day we let Him realize that we also care for Him and
love Him.” ~ Ashthe
A Thanksgiving Story
Author: Andrea Nannette Mejia
It was the day before Thanksgiving the first one my three
children and I would be spending without their father, who had left several
months before. Now the two older children were very sick with the flu, and the
eldest had just been prescribed bed rest for a week.
It was a cool, gray day outside, and a light rain was falling. I
grew wearier as I scurried around, trying to care for each child: thermometers,
juice, diapers. And I was fast running out of liquids for the children. But
when I checked my purse, all I found was about $2.50 and this was supposed to
last me until the end of the month. That's when I heard the phone ring.
It was the secretary from our former church, and she told me that
they had been thinking about us and had something to give us from the
congregation. I told her that I was going out to pick up some more juice and
soup for the children, and I would drop by the church on my way to the market.
I arrived at the church just before lunch. The church secretary
met me at the door and handed me a special gift envelope. "We think of you
and the kids often," she said, "and you are in our hearts and prayers.
We love you." When I opened the envelope, I found two grocery certificates
inside. Each was worth $20. I was so touched and moved, I broke down and cried.
"Thank you very much," I said, as we hugged each other.
"Please give our love and thanks to the church." Then I drove to a
store near our home and purchased some much-needed items for the children.
At the check-out counter I had a little over $14.00 worth of
groceries, and I handed the cashier one of the gift certificates. She took it,
then turned her back for what seemed like a very long time. I thought something
might be wrong. Finally I said, "This gift certificate is a real blessing.
Our former church gave it to our family, knowing I'm a single patent trying to
make ends meet."
The cashier then turned around, with tears in her loving eyes, and
replied, "Honey, that's wonderful! Do you have a turkey?"
"No. It's okay because my children are sick anyway."
She then asked, "Do you have anything else for Thanksgiving
dinner?"
Again I replied, "No."
After handing me the change from the certificate, she looked at my
face and said, "Honey, I can't tell you exactly why right now, but I want
you to go back into the store and buy a turkey, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie or
anything else you need for a Thanksgiving dinner."
I was shocked, and humbled to tears. "Are you sure?" I
asked.
"Yes! Get whatever you want. And get some Gatorade for the
kids."
I felt awkward as I went back to do more shopping, but I selected
a fresh turkey, a few yams and potatoes, and some juices for the children. Then
I wheeled the shopping cart up to the same cashier as before. As I placed my
groceries on the counter, she looked at me once more with giant tears in her
kind eyes and began to speak.
"Now I can tell you. This morning I prayed that I could help
someone today, and you walked through my line." She reached under the
counter for her purse and took out a $20 bill. She paid for my groceries and
then handed me the change. Once more I was moved to tears.
The sweet cashier then said, "I am a Christian. Here is my
phone number if you ever need anything." She then took my head in her
hands, kissed my cheek and said, "God bless you, honey."
As I walked to my car, I was overwhelmed by this stranger's love
and by the realization that God loves my family too, and shows us his love
through this stranger's and my church's kind deeds.
The children were supposed to have spent Thanksgiving with their
father that year, but because of the flu they were home with me, for a very
special Thanksgiving Day. They were feeling better, and we all ate the goodness
of the Lord's bounty and our community's love. Our hearts were truly filled
with thanks.
“Every
good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the
heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” ~
James 1:17
I.N.J.
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