From football to parade floats to delicious feasts and the kickoff of the Yuletide season, Thanksgiving means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. Yet, at its core, the annual holiday is a triumph of persistence and a model for how we should live not just on the fourth Thursday of November, but on every other day of the year, too.

Despite what popular culture might suggest, the Pilgrims didn’t pioneer the feast day. In fact, it was Sir Martin Frobisher, an English sea captain and explorer, who called for his 400 men spread across his 15-ship flotilla to give thanks to God for their safe journey to North America in 1578. They landed in the Canadian Arctic, 42 years before the Mayflower made it to Plymouth Rock.

Most of us have been taught from childhood to be grateful for blessings large and small, but the fact that you need to be taught to give thanks suggests the practice is not intuitive. Maybe that’s why the tradition of a regular Thanksgiving holiday evolved over time. There was a Thanksgiving in 1621, but not again until 1630.

We know from our history classes that the colonists observed several special days devoted to prayer and gratitude during the Revolutionary War. But it took Alexander Hamilton’s prodding of George Washington to declare one in 1789 and again in 1795. While various states celebrated from time to time, it took another war to make the national tradition stick.

It was in 1863 when Abraham Lincoln established the annual tradition of Thanksgiving on the last Thursday of November. He called on Americans to thank God for their blessings and also pray for peace and the preservation of the Union. Abe gets the official credit, but we have a woman named Sara Josepha Hale to thank for making Thanksgiving an annual observance.

Sara was the editor of the Godey’s Lady’s Book, an influential magazine in the 1800s. It boasted a circulation of over 150,000 subscribers and featured prominent writers such as Nathaniel Hawthorne, Edgar Allan Poe, and Harriet Beecher Stowe. Hale served as editor for over 40 years and regularly used the platform to call for a National Day of Thanksgiving. For decades, her suggestion fell on deaf ears.

But then came the Civil War. Sara’s letter and appeal to President Lincoln did the trick. There’s nothing quite like a major crisis to get your attention. Thursday was chosen because that was a traditional Puritan day for lectures and religious celebrations.

Those who think current dictatorial claims surrounding the presidency are novel might be interested to know that President Franklin Roosevelt ignited a firestorm in 1939 when he unilaterally moved Thanksgiving from the last Thursday in November to the fourth Thursday. Retailers complained that the holiday shopping season was too short and pleaded for an extra week. He obliged, but half the country refused to play along. So, in 1939, there was the Roosevelt decreed “Franksgiving” on November 23rd and the “Republican Thanksgiving” on November 30th. Colorado was one of two states to celebrate both days.

After the same controversy erupted in 1940 and 1941, Congress stepped up and passed a law to permanently make Thanksgiving the fourth Thursday in November.

The controversy concerning what Thursday we celebrate and the commercialization of the established day itself notwithstanding, Thanksgiving is a reminder that we shouldn’t wait to pray until we’re in trouble, nor only express our gratitude when we’re blessed with plenty. The wise live in a constant posture of appreciation. They recognize that every second of every day is a gift that we shouldn’t take for granted.

This was the sentiment the Apostle Paul was expressing when he wrote to his friends in Greece. “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances,” he explained. “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through Him who gives me strength.”

We would be wise to pursue the same ideal. Even if we were to double our existing troubles, Americans would be in an enviable position of plenty as we give thanks to God this year. So celebrate once or twice – or even 363 more times, too.

Paul J. Batura is a local writer and founder of the 4:8 Media Network. He can be reached via email Paul@PaulBatura.com or on X @PaulBatura.