Thanksgiving

Patriot Flyer

Today, November 25, 2004, we in the United States set aside a day of giving thanks for all the good things in our lives. Our constitution guarantees us as American citizens the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Let me address just these three things.

Life: Not only are we speaking of life in the temporal sense. I give thanks today for eternal life through my Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us that we can be sure of our future, and thereby live more fulfilled lives in the present through knowledge that we have been saved from eternal damnation by the blood of Christ, shed on the cross of calvary. In my reflections today, my thoughts turn to the Word of God, to His Son, and to the promise of life forever without end in God's presence. God has truly blessed me and for that I am deeply thankful.

Liberty: Since the foundation of our nation in 1776, millions of courageous Americans have given their lives, their blood and treasure, defending our freedoms. I am honored to have served among heroes, giving 22 years of my life to defending those freedoms. But compared to those who gave all, my contribution was so insignificant that I am humbled. I indeed give thanks today, for all those who believed in the idea of freedom and gave themselves for it.

Pursuit of happiness: Perhaps the broadest of all our freedoms is the freedom to pursue our own individual happiness, in the manner and in the direction that we so choose. One of the primary reasons, I think, that people from all over the world desire to immigrate to the USA is that innate inner hunger to pursue a dream of their own. May we always be such a nation, such a beacon of hope to the world, as to attract the cold, the hungry, the downtrodden, to our shores.

This is, I know, a small contribution to the thoughts of us all today, but it is my hope that these few words will cause others to pause and to give thanks for what they have and for what they can pursue as Americans.

Joe Comer