Thanks Giving
"The secret of my success
is that at an early age
I discovered I was not
God." - Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.
Dickens said “There is always
something to be thankful for”. Sometimes
though we get caught up in the day to day “stuff”! Thanksgiving is a day filled with many great
holiday memories… for me that would be of food, family and football. Originally, however, it was a day to give
thanks for safe passage and for the harvest.
When you think on those first
Pilgrims you realize that they were an oppressed people which were seeking
freedom and looking for the land of milk and honey. Their trust was placed firmly with God. This is very similar to the story of Exodus
where an oppressed people were seeking freedom from Egypt…both were looking for
the promised land, overflowing with milk and honey, and both were trusting in
the same God to deliver them there. It wasn’t so easy however, both groups of
people gave in to fear and doubt at times, both facing starvation not used to
their new environments. God provided
through Moses to the Israelites and God provided to the Pilgrims through the
openness of the Native Americans to share their food and knowledge of the land with
the first settlers. The food was
abundant but the settlers not knowing their new found environment found
scarcity and fear, facing harsh weather and starvation. Our early settlers found help in the Native
Americans and gave thanks to God for their survival, as well as their new found
neighbors. This month we celebrate our abundance
and yes ….our excess! In America the
Holidays take on a much more materialistic and individual nature as opposed to
celebrating and giving thanks for our reliance on God and our neighbors.
The land still flows with milk and
honey… only now it’s processed! With so,
so much, many of us still feel that we don’t have enough…many of us still feel
scarcity. In our current economic
situation one can easily feel the squeeze of this scarcity mentality, the fear
of not having enough! In times like these we especially need to remember that
we are connected and dependant on God and one another whether we like it or
not. Alone we are nothing!
When you sit down for your Holiday meal
try to note the connections with the world.
Where did the turkey come from?
The Earth…the farmer….the feed…the butcher etc. What is needed to take your car to your
families house…imagine if while preparing your meal the electricity were to go
out…Imagine what would happen to our lifestyle if we removed electricity from
the equation…all this stuff is assumed, and as such taken for granted!
When looked at in this way… with
all that we have been blessed with… at this place and at this time….the glass
isn’t half full…. it’s overflowing…That is to say that we are truly blessed and
we really do have so much to be grateful for.
Most all of us right here and now live in the top 1-10% of the entire
world through no effort of our own, but by just where we were born and by God’s
grace. Most of us have never gone to bed
hungry unless by choice. The earth was created
by God in abundance, but in order to live this abundance together we must SHARE
it with one another.
A couple years back I spent the day
with my wife at the Dachau concentration camp in Germany. I saw the film taken
by the American’s that liberated the camp at Wars end. The piles of emaciated bodies will be forever
etched in my mind! In horror and with a
sense of despair…I asked myself how could this have happened…then a small inner
voice showed me the connection. The
German people were oppresses after WWI, they were blamed for everything and
were made to pay reparations which bankrupted the country, leaving them with
nothing and no self esteem. They lived
in isolation and fear. They needed hope
and unity but instead of turning to God and their neighbors they put their
salvation in a man and his ideals…what appeared to be hope became a nightmare
instead! Fear…Scarcity…Isolation…through
these things all manner of evil can arise in the world unchecked! Thank God the world rose up and responded! Today in the shadow of that camp three lights
burn in the darkness… Jewish, Protestant, and Catholic memorial chapels
symbolize that God’s light never goes out for those who put their trust and
faith in him rather than in any man!
So today as you look at the news
and notice the issues that affect our world note the isolation, the scarcity
and the fear that is portrayed to us…Amidst these global issues: the economy,
climate change, poverty, war…we still have so so much to be thankful for. Let us remember where we come from. And with
humble and appreciative hearts let us put our trust where it belongs…in our
Lord and our God.
And the gift of God’s Grace freely
given to us…OUR ABUNDANCE…is then to be freely shared with those who have less…
for only in communion with God and our neighbors are we ALL truly blessed.
Happy Thanks Giving!
Your faithful servant,
carmen
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