16 Thanksgiving Poems

A collection of thanksgiving poems to share with others and to encourage us to be grateful for all the blessings we have in our lives.

Be Thankful
Poet Unknown

Be thankful that you don’t already have everything you desire.
If you did, what would there be to look forward to?
Be thankful when you don’t know something,
for it gives you the opportunity to learn.

Be thankful for the difficult times.
During those times you grow.
Be thankful for your limitations,
because they give you opportunities for improvement.
Be thankful for each new challenge,
because it will build your strength and character.

Be thankful for your mistakes.
They will teach you valuable lessons.
Be thankful when you’re tired and weary,
because it means you’ve made a difference.

It’s easy to be thankful for the good things.
A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who
are also thankful for the setbacks.
Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive.
Find a way to be thankful for your troubles,
and they can become your blessings.

“Thanksgiving, after all, is a word of action.” W. J. Cameron – Thanksgiving Quotes

What’s The Use
Poet: Douglas Malloch

What’s the use of always weepin’,
Making trouble last?
What’s the use of always keepin’
Thinkin’ of the past?
Each must have his tribulation –
Water with his wine;
Life, it ain’t no celebration,
Trouble – I’ve had mine –
But today is fine!

Thankful For Many Things
Poet: Julie Hebert

I am thankful for my family,
My friends I feel the same.
Life is filled with many thanks,
Life is the perfect game.

Life is filled with treasures,
If you’re a lucky one.
Be grateful and be humble,
And share them with someone.

But one thing we must remember,
We are not the one to thank.
There is a higher power here,
That we must give first rank.

I am thankful for my life,
And all that it holds.
I’m excited to see what’s next for me,
Lets see how it unfolds.

“When one is thankful for the blessings in their life, they are choosing to attract more positivity and abundance.” Michael Austin Jacobs
Blessed

In Everything Give Thanks
Poet: Unknown

For all that God in mercy sends –
For health and children, home and friends;
For comfort in the time of need,
For every kindly word and deed,
For happy talks and holy thoughts;
For guidance in our daily walk –
In everything give thanks!

For beauty in this world of ours,
For verdant grass and lovely flowers,
For song of birds, for horn of bees,
For the refreshing summer breeze,
For hill and plain, for streams and wood,
For the great ocean’s mighty flood –
In everything give thanks!

For the sweet sleep which comes with night,
For the returning morning’s light,
For the bright sun that shines on high,
For the stars glittering in the sky –
For these and everything we see,
O Lord our hearts we lift to thee;
In everything give thanks!

In everything give thanks!
Words of Encouragement

Thanksgiving
Poet: Edgar A. Guest

Gettin’ together to smile an’ rejoice,
An’ eatin’ an’ laughin’ with folks of your choice;
An’ kissin’ the girls an’ declarin’ that they
Are growin more beautiful day after day;
Chattin’ an’ braggin’ a bit with the men,
Buildin’ the old family circle again;
Livin’ the wholesome an’ old-fashioned cheer,
Just for awhile at the end of the year.

Greetings fly fast as we crowd through the door
And under the old roof we gather once more
Just as we did when the youngsters were small;
Mother’s a little bit grayer, that’s all.
Father’s a little bit older, but still
Ready to romp an’ to laugh with a will.
Here we are back at the table again
Tellin’ our stories as women an men.

Bowed are our heads for a moment in prayer;
Oh, but we’re grateful an’ glad to be there.
Home from the east land an’ home from the west,
Home with the folks that are dearest an’ best.
Out of the sham of the cities afar
We’ve come for a time to be just what we are.
Here we can talk of ourselves an’ be frank,
Forgettin’ position an’ station an’ rank.

Give me the end of the year an’ its fun
When most of the plannin’ an’ toilin’ is done;
Bring all the wanderers home to the nest,
Let me sit down with the ones I love best,
Hear the old voices still ringin’ with song,
See the old faces unblemished by wrong,
See the old table with all of its chairs
An I’ll put soul in my Thanksgivin’ prayers.

Trees
Poet: Greta Zwaan, © 1978

Oh, the splendour of the autumn when the shades of colour glow;
When the trees dressed in their glory stir up shadows to and fro.

When the twilight sun is sinking, dusk embraces Mother Earth;
What a joy to catch the splendour, moments of unmeasured worth.

Stop a while and ponder nature, thank the Lord for all you see;
For our use and for their beauty, God created every tree.

A Special Day
Poet: Julie Hebert

Thanksgiving is a special day,
A day we give our thanks.
For all the people in our lives,
And the money in our banks.

Thanksgiving is a special day,
A day we share the joy.
We come before a lavish meal,
One we quite enjoy.

Thanksgiving is a special day,
Togetherness, all families the same.
Time spent in happiness,
We may even plan a game.

But most importantly Thanksgiving,
Is a day to remember.
Be grateful for all you have all year,
January straight through to December.

“Display, a life full of gratitude, and remember to give thanks each day.”
Danielle Duckery
Gratitude

Thankful Heart
Poet: Henry Coyle

Father, we lift our thankful hearts to Thee
With gratitude, for all Thy bounty free,
For love, and friends, for home, for faith’s pure light,
For health, for harvest store, for rest at night –

For every blessing showered from above –
Bestowed on us unstinted, by Thy Love
And thoughtful care; O hear us, as we pray,
Father in heaven, this Thanksgiving day.

Watch over us, be Thou our Stay and Guide,
Thro’ day and night; guard us from sinful pride,
For we are human, weak and prone to wrong,
And by Thy grace alone are we made strong.

Give us our dally bread, our wants supply,
And touch our hearts that we may not deny
The widow and the orphan of their share
Of what we have – relieve their want and care.

O grant that we may keep Thy law, and live
A Christian life; our enemies forgive;
That we may love our neighbor, work for peace.
That so Thy glory may on earth increase.

“Give thanks not just on Thanksgiving Day, but every day of your life.
Appreciate and never take for granted all that you have.”
Catherine Pulsifer
Appreciation Quotes

Give Thanks
Poet: Julie Hebert

The days we do give thanks,
We are grateful for what we were given.
The house, our family and friends,
And what waits for us in Heaven.

But there are more than the eye sees,
And more we should give thanks.
Our lives are more than people and objects,
Their more than what’s in the banks.

Have you ever thought,
What it would be like.
To live in a world of anguish,
A world full of strife?

Be thankful for your surrounds,
The safety to walk down the street.
The schools and abilities to learn,
And the food we sit down to eat.

God Deserves The Credit
Poet: Greta Zwaan, © 2010

I have a goodly heritage, the blessings flow my way;
Great beauty, peace and majesty are granted me each day.
There’s peace of mind and peace of heart and freedom in my land,
Not brought through what I have achieved, not by the will of man.

These are the gifts passed on from God, not something I have earned,
But grace and mercy touched God’s heart, which man cannot discern.
Why should my God, a holy God, pay mind to lowly me?
While others are afflicted and longing to be free?

This land of grace, my Canada, that shines from coast to coast,
United Nations claims it’s first! And, oh how we do boast!
Should not the credit go to God who made all things from dust?
Who gently holds the universe, whose power we can trust?

Yet man-made laws have ruined so much, directing his own way,
Not heeding laws that God assigned, but setting things array.
Oh, God, have mercy, turn us back, that we might seek Your face,
Forgive us for our wayward life, extend once more Your grace.

Create in us awareness of what You’d have us do,
Help us to recognize the fact that we owe all to You.

The key to being a wonderful writer is not to write. You just get out of the way.
Leave room for God to walk in the room. And when I write something that I know is right,
I get on my knees and say ‘thank you.’
Michael Jackson
Thank You

Thanksgiving
Poet: Wilhelmina Stitch

Thank God for this!
That once again we are alive to greet the spring;
To smell the earth, fresh-washed with rain
To watch each little growing thing;
And, watching, feel each bud and leaf
Are symbols of the death of grief.
To think we’re privileged to see laburnum’s graceful gold cascade;
The pink and white fragility of dainty springtime’s hill and glade;
And seeing, feel desire to praise
The Source of all these beauteous days.

Thank God for this!
That we can feel a burgeoning within the heart;
That springtime has the power to heal the wound of grief,
Its pain and smart;
Reveal a new and friendly earth where blossom joy and cheer and mirth.

Thank God for this!
We see His face framed in the loveliness of spring,
We see the workings of His grace in every little growing thing.
We see His face, we hear His voice
Bidding all downcast souls rejoice.

“This most of all is the message of Thanksgiving:
Everything really will be all right.”
Sam Sifton, Thanksgiving
Inspirational Quotes

The ABC’s of Thanksgiving
Poet: Unknown

Although things are not perfect;
Because of trail or pain;
Continue in Thanksgiving;
Do not begin to blame;

Even when the times are hard;
Fierce winds are bound to blow;
God is forever able;
Hold on to what you know;

Imagine life without His love;
Joy would cease to be;
Keep thanking Him for all the things;
Love imparts to thee;

Move out of “Camp complaining”;
No weapon that is known;
On earth can yield the power;
Praise can do alone;

Quit looking at the future;
Redeem the time at hand;
Start every day with worship;
To “thank” is a command;

Until we see Him coming;
Victorious in the sky;
We’ll run the race with gratitude;
Xalting God most high;

Yes, thereï¿½ll be good times and yes some will be bad; but . . .
Zion waits in glory…where none are ever sad!

Night’s Blessings
Poet: Eldred Herbert

When I go to bed and cannot sleep,
I don’t waste time by counting sheep;
I count all my blessings, one by one,
From the early morn tiill the settling sun;
The day so new, the sunrise so clear,
I started my day with thankful prayer;
Thanked God for husband and children two,
Freckled-face boy, girl with eyes of blue.

Thanked God for ability to work,
And from life’s battle I did not shirk;
I thanked Him for guidance through the day,
He is my Buckler from tempter’s sway.
And when I was tempted to be rude,
I turned to my Lord in solitude;
His strength sufficient, my soul restored,
Just one more blessing from the Lord.

When day is done and I lay in bed,
I feel God’s blessing upon me spread.
If you are restless and cannot sleep,
Just count your blessing’s instead of sheep;
You will find the solitude is right,
You will feel His presence in the night;
Then rest shall come, repose in sleep,
When you count blessings instead of sheep.

What am I really thankful for? Abundant supply, enough and more?
A warm, cozy home with carpeted floor? Safety behind the lock on my door?
Oh, yes, I admit I take comfort in these: the joys of my life, the pleasures, the ease.
Iï¿½m happy for freedom to do as I please, attend social evening and afternoon teas.
Consider the fact that I’ve worked to obtain, through the strength of my body, material gain.

I accomplished great things, I did it with strain, sometimes with heartache and even with pain.
But I’ve carved for myself a name that is known, important position, esteem that has grown.
Perhaps, in the process I’ve trampled a few who could not decipher the tricks that I knew,
Some gullible men who trusted my word, they accepted my plans and all that they heard.

But when you consider the gains that I’ve made, I can’t stop to worry or go to their aid.
We all know the saying, “Look out for your own,” so I’m my own maker, a fact that’s well known.
Perhaps in the future I’ll ease off a bit, but now is the time to “get all you can get.’
Maybe tomorrow Iï¿½ll think about God, and even consider His staff and His rod.

Someone once told me He created the earth, upholds and sustains it, and gave all things birth.
I’m really not certain that that could be true; I do believe that your life’s up to you.
If God is creator and all man is His, then why do I struggle just to find bliss?
Iï¿½ve worked since my childhood to get what I craved, to find satisfaction from earnings Iï¿½ve saved.

I’m still not content, there’s got to be more – the end of the rainbow, that faraway shore.
I’ll keep on achieving and persevere through; it’s my only solution, that’s all I can do.
If you find a method thatï¿½s better than mine, I wish you would tell me or write me a line.
A way of rejoicing, for peace and contentment; a satisfied heart and no more resentment.

I’ve not much time left for I’m climbing in years, and as I grow older I’m discovering fears:
Fears of tomorrow, of things that might be; if you have the answer then help set me free.
I’ve no other method, I’ve no other way, but if you can help me, then help me TODAY!!

Thanksgiving
Poet: James Whitcomb Riley, 1849 – 1916

Let us be thankful – not only because
Since last our universal thanks were told
We have grown greater in the worldï¿½s applause,
And fortune’s newer smiles surpass the old –

But thankful for all things that come as alms
From out the open hand of Providence: –
The winter clouds and storms – the summer calms –
The sleepless dread – the drowse of indolence.

Let us be thankful – thankful for the prayers
Whose gracious answers were long, long delayed,
That they might fall upon us unawares,
And bless us, as in greater need we prayed.

Let us be thankful for the loyal hand
That love held out in welcome to our own,
When love and only love could understand
The need of touches we had never known.

Let us be thankful for the longing eyes
That gave their secret to us as they wept,
Yet in return found, with a sweet surprise,
Love’s touch upon their lids, and, smiling, slept.

And let us, too, be thankful that the tears
Of sorrow have not all been drained away,
That through them still, for all the coming years,
We may look on the dead face of To-day.

The summer sun has weakened, its rays no longer strong;
The leaves have changed their colors; it’s fall before too long.
The trees have become barren; the wind removed their clothes;
Forlorn they stand there naked, reflecting on their woes.

In spring they’re rich with blossoms, their fragrance fills the air;
Proud sentinels, like soldiers, they move and sway with flair.
Their summer fruit is plenteous, their boughs bent down with weight;
Delicious, sun-drenched offerings, the quality first rate!

Then comes the fall, the harvest, the fruit is gathered in;
The trees have done their duty, they’ve served their land again.
But now they’re not producing, they’ll have a well-earned rest;
And mankind might applaud them; they’ve done their very best.

More Poems to Inspire and Encourage