Thanksgiving

The holiday season is once again upon us, and I have to say I am very glad to be so far away from the commercialism that has taken all that is sacred out of our Holy days! Here, there is no bustle to buy, buy, buy, because there is nothing to buy and nothing to buy it with. Over the past week I’ve been thinking a lot about the Thanksgiving holiday and what it is, what it is supposed to be, and what it should mean for me as a follower of Jesus Christ. I remember being in elementary school having a whole day of class dedicated to celebrating the holiday. We would cut out hand shaped turkeys, make big pilgrim hats, eat a ton of sugary snacks, and talk about all of the stuff we were thankful for. I remember filling countless lists over the years of things that the Lord had provided me and my family with. And I was truly thankful for them. My lists would always include my wonderful family, great friends, and a long list of the material things that the Lord had been so faithful to provide. Being here, it would be easy to list all the things that we have the luxury of at home in America, but it would be worthless, because all of those things are essentially worthless. People here don’t have electricity or running water, or even clean water for that matter, so what good are water heaters and dish washers or washing machines? There is always an abundance of good food around the holidays as well, and in fact in many households that has become the sole purpose in celebrating at all! In America, we have so much to be thankful for that I feel that sometimes we lose track of the things that are the most valuable. The thing that we should be the most thankful for that we take the most for granted is the wonderful gift of salvation through Jesus Christ! The work of reconciliation is the greatest, most essential, most exciting thing in the world! That our indescribably great, perfect and holy God would choose to reconcile His creation to Himself by taking on Himself the punishment for their sins for the glory of His name is beyond comprehension and should make our hearts spill over with jubilant thanksgiving!! In light of the cross, water heaters and sanitization plants, and good healthcare facilities are garbage! In comparison with the honor of being able to have a relationship with Jesus Christ, our families and friends are nothing! And what is food? It does not and cannot fill or satisfy, we can eat until we can’t even walk to the door but in the morning, we will still be hungry! Our God is able to fill us forever with His very presence and that is reason enough to give thanks!
To be entirely clear, I am so thankful for the overwhelming abundance that the Lord has blessed me with! I cannot understand why He would choose to bless me with the wonderful wonderful family that He’s placed me in; the terrific friendships He’s brought into my life that challenge, encourage and bless me so much; the opportunity to have a quality education, and live in a beautiful part of the world in a nice house, and a million more wonderful blessings that are completely undeserved! But, during this holiday celebration, these are not the things that are at the forefront of my mind, nor should they be! I am so thankful for these gifts, but my eyes and heart should be focused on giving thanks to our wonderful gift giver, the LORD!!
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving week!