The following proclamation was made by Governor Bradford in 1623, 3 years after the Pilgrims settled at Plymouth:
To all ye Pilgrims, Inasmuch as the Great Father has given us this year an abundant harvest of Indian corn, wheat, peas, squashes and garden vegetables, and has made the forests to abound with game and the sea with fish and clams, and inasmuch as he has spared us from pestilence and disease, has granted us freedom to worship God according to the dictates of our own conscience; now I, your magistrate, do proclaim that all ye Pilgrims, with your wives and ye little ones, do gather at ye meeting house, on ye hill, between the hours of 9 and 12 in the day time, on Thursday November ye 29th of the year of our Lord one thousand six hundred and twenty three, and the third year since ye Pilgrims landed on ye Plymouth rock, there to listen to ye pastor and render thanksgiving to ye Almighty God for all His blessings.
Ephesians 5:19, 20 encourages Christians everywhere, "Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, ALWAYS giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ."
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 says, "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus."
Dori and I want to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving! As we enter into the holiday season, we are very thankful for the Alaska Assemblies of God and the wonderful opportunity you have given us to serve you and represent our Network. We are very mindful of the outpouring of God’s grace over our lives. We want to express gratitude for each of you and the wonderful blessing we have experienced because of you and the goodness of our Heavenly Father. This will be our 26th Thanksgiving in Alaska. As I reflect on the years past, my heart is full of gratitude. We are very excited for what the Lord has planned for all our families and friends in the years to come.
My prayer is that your families and ministries will be blessed beyond comprehension. We love you and are praying you will have a wonderful Thanksgiving and that you will experience the 2011 holiday season in a fresh new way, as Jesus manifests His grace and love.
“I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart . . . all of you share in God’s grace with me . . . And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.” Philippians 1:3-11, NIV
You are loved,
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