On November 1st several of my neighbors deflated their over-sized Halloween figures, then inflated their over-sized Christmas figures. Santa and manger songs popped up on the radio, and the shopping malls began to transform into winter wonderlands. While thousands of turkeys wished it would be so easy to forget, we still managed to squeeze in another time-worn holiday.
Many of us relished our 4-day weekend, but Thanksgiving came and went all too fast. I always enjoy seeing my daughters, son-in-laws, and grandsons. I missed seeing a close friend of mine who was away at his sisters this year, but I delighted in being with a Russian girl that my daughter is caring for. We only had three carnivores at a table set for nine, so a partial bird was prepared. I prayed over the meal, actually giving thanks for taste buds. That’s why we gathered, right?
The food was delicious, as expected, right down to the marshmallow-topped sweet potatoes that had set the oven on fire a little earlier. I didn’t fall asleep after the meal, which was a miracle, and I made a conscious effort to engage everyone in the room. Another daughter, son-in-law and grandson joined us for desert, having shared their meal with other relatives. I truly was, and am, thankful for those that are in my life.
The Bible says to give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. (I Thessalonians 5:18) It’s easy to give thanks when things are going well, but how do you give thanks when life is, well, lifeless? I remember in several previous Thanksgiving prayers preaching (how many prayers have you heard that are nothing more than sermons?) that we shouldn’t relegate giving thanks to just one day of the year, that we should always be thankful.
Few of us will ever get to the bottom of the pit like Job. Poor fellow could write a country-western song. Lost his business, his family and his health. Then his wife started nagging. Can we imagine any situation in which we could not find one thing to be thankful for?
My mother owned a couple of restaurants in Orlando when I was growing up. She also collected “treasures”, as she called them, or what some would call knick-knacks. One such item was a framed saying which read, “I used to complain that I had no shoes, until I met a man who had no feet.” Certainly one way to look at things is to realize that it could be worse.
But I would rather take each trouble and use it as an opportunity to locate within my life something for which I could be grateful. This cold I have is miserable, but at least I’ve still got my appetite. The house burned down, but my family got out alive. Someone very close to me has died, but I have great hope that I will see them again. I lost my job, but God still loves me, and I’m not starving.
We humans have the greatest gift that God can give. Each other. Isn’t it interesting that Thanksgiving is celebrated just before the most stressful time of the year? From Black Friday to Christmas Day the hustle and bustle of Christmas planning degenerates to who-gets-what, false cheer and maxed-out credit cards. A psychiatrist friend of mine once told me that the weeks following Christmas is generally their busiest time, when depression takes hold. The Christ child returns to the manger, and the bleak new year looms ahead, with its wars and rumors of wars — another year of survival.
But the hope of Christ is that our hearts will reach out to other hearts. Our Christmas sharing will be genuine. We will be conscious of hurt when it surfaces in others. We will put away our pride and share our own pains and sorrows. Some will reject our care. Move on. There are others that will take a helping hand or accept a listening ear. We don’t always have to fix their problems; just being there is a wonderful beginning.
Verse 17 of I Thessalonians 5 says pray continually. I’ve written before that my two well-worn prayers throughout each day are “Help me, Lord” and “Thank You.” My greatest desire is that I will become more and more obedient to my God and Father, so that my “Thank You’s” will begin to tip the scale.
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