Everyone knows the dual role of Thanksgiving—eating more than what's reasonable and expressing appreciation for something or someone. So let's focus on the word "thanks." You can handle the meal part on your own.

I recently visited a neighbor in the hospital. He had a disease that attacked muscle tissue, and it had progressed to the point that he could not breathe on his own. In fact, his entire body began to shut down. After a few weeks in intensive care, he made the decision to turn the machines off on a Thursday. I visited him on Wednesday, and we both knew it was to say goodbye.

Twenty minutes into our time together, I asked him if he was going to heaven. He nodded yes. We chatted for a while longer about what going to heaven meant, what it would be like, and the new body he would receive upon arrival. This conversation went surprisingly well, considering that due to the medical equipment he could only write words on a pad of paper or mouth them out. To make double sure about the ...