Pull up a chair, if you've a mind to...there's hot chocolate steaming on the stove, so grab a cup o', and settle on in....

NOW, IT'S STORYTIME, one and all, and on this blessed day, we peer in on a cozy and festive Thanksgiving celebration in someone's home, where there is a room full of family/friends...yes, this is the scene for some. And yet...and yet...we sense that there are many variations of this scene throughout the world.

Yes, there are indeed those who have rooms with less family/friends. And then there are those with none. No doubt, even some who sit alone in a prison cell, falsely accused of a crime...wondering what horrors the next few moments could bring....

BUT, if that prisoner is a believer in Christ—that Jesus is the Son of God who died for our sins and rose again—for that that prisoner, he is as free as a jaybird!

Why, he can picture a room full of friends/family, and imagine that one day, someday soon (our journey on Earth is merely a tiny blip on the radar of Eternity), this room will turn into the whole of Heaven. Where ALL are family. And he can look up at that errant little sparrow that landed in the prison windowsill, and know that our Lord is getting him a message of HOPE, which translates in the Bible to CERTAINTY....

And this blessed prisoner can also hearken back to something even more special. That he is, no matter his attire and surroundings and meal (or lack thereof) for the day, a child of the living and glorious, all-powerful Almighty God of the Holy Bible!

AN ALMIGHTY GOD who is there, right next to him, inside of him in the form of the Holy Spirit—not even a breath away, but closerthanthis!

And this same beloved Lord is also aware of this prisoner AND his particular problem/situation, will comfort him in every moment, has a plan for him, and will get him through this challenge...bit by bit....

As our Lord will for all of us, for all believers in Christ, and so, as we prepare for whatever Thanksgiving celebration that we have planned, it doesn't matter the amount of people in the room, or the amount/type of food on the table...or even if there is no table thereof...we have our sweet Lord and His unconditional love and watchful eye...a feast that is fit for a king or queen!"

AND THAT IS the little story of how some celebrations are small, and some are big...but none more precious than the other, my dear Friends in Christ.... Indeed, all of us are loved just the same.

God bless us everyone!

THE END