This late afternoon on Thanksgiving Eve I walked, as I do often, along the Nashua River Rail Trail. Walking has lowered my cholesterol and my blood pressure, heightened my sensitivity to God’s beautiful creation, and cleared my mind to think deep thoughts and ponder tough questions. Walking is truly good for the Christian – body, soul, and mind.

Today I stopped to take this picture of the river. The air and the water were still and quiet. The beauty and calm of the sight carried my thoughts to the time in the future when Jesus will return and judge evil and injustice and do away with these unhappy things forever. God will set things right in his creation. And he will wipe away all the tears from the eyes of those who have been faithful to him.

It’s Thanksgiving tomorrow. We are grateful for freedom, bountiful food and possessions, for friends, family, and teachers, for our jobs, our churches, our schools, our homes. But whom do we thank for all this?  Our friends and family? Our employers? Our teachers? My thanks go to God, my creator, rescuer, and comforter. He is my sure hope of a future existence so splendid that in the light of that new creation, even the most beautiful and bountiful parts of this life will seem pale.

May God bless your Thanksgiving celebration with a hint of the wonderful hope that is possible for all.