Faith in God helps overcome hardships

I'd like to share some facts about Thanksgiving Day. I researched several years ago my mother's people, who were among the first settlers in Catawba County. They were the Robinsons and Adam Sherrill's family, who came from Tennessee. Long ago, their families came from England to be free to worship their God.

In 1620, 120 people came over on the Mayflower. The trip was filled with hardship. For two months they lived down below the deck. To comfort themselves, they sang a lot from the book of Psalms. This so irritated one of the crew that he threatened to throw them overboard. As it turned out, the only person to be thrown overboard was this crewman.

This ship usually carried a cargo of wine and the spillage from previous trips had soaked the beans, thus serving as a disinfectant that helped to prevent the spread of the diseases usually found on such trips. During a terrible storm, the main beam of the mast cracked. If this could not be repaired, the ship would sink. They just happened to have a large printing press aboard and used one of its screws to repair the beam.

The Pilgrims barely survived their first winter. God sent a special man, Squanto, who showed them how to survive by planting corn. These men and women were believers and dealt honestly with the Indians.

After the Revolutionary War, President Washington declared Nov. 26 the first national day of thanksgiving. President Lincoln later declared the last Thursday in November as a day to acknowledge the gracious gifts God had bestowed on America. In 1941, Congress officially made it a national holiday.We're facing serious challenges in our country. In our past history, we have risen above serious times. Let us once again pray and look to God and trust for our future.

— Linda M. Harmon

Statesville

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