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| Our 2017 Thanksgiving Display |
- Deuteronomy 8:7-18
- 2 Corinthians 9:6-15
2013
The Sermon title is Remember! Be Thankful! Be Generous!
Early Thoughts: What is Thanksgiving Day for? A big meal? A long weekend? In NW Ontario the 2nd Saturday of October marked the beginning of moose season so a three day hunting excursion was on some minds. Or maybe is it a time to stop and reflect on life. Maybe that reflection will lead us to gratitude. Maybe that gratitude will lead us to be more generous.
The Revised Common Lectionary is a 3 year cycle. In 2 of those three years the suggested reading from the Jewish Scriptures comes from Deuteronomy. And both of those passages are a recapping of what God has done for God's people. Apparently remembering is a key part of being thankful. Apparently reminding ourselves of gifts given is a key part of being thankful for those gifts. And thinking about it, that makes a whole lot of sense. So the first step in our Thanks-giving is to Remember.
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| 2012 |
The next step, logically enough, is to Be Thankful. Once we have recognized what gifts we have in our lives we have to choose to be thankful for them. We could choose to see them as entitlements rather than gifts. We could choose to say these are things that are owed to us, or things that are our right to have. But maybe that is both unrealistic and unhelpful. If we see our lives as gifts. If we see those things that make our life full and abundant as gifts then I believe we will be happier, we will be more grateful (which in and of itself changes how we view the world), we will be less likely to lament our perceived lack or scarcity, we will see the abundance that is a part of our lives. And then we will be able to give thanks.
Some people might say that the cycle ends there. we remember, we recognize our gifts, and we give thanks. I disagree. As I consider the words and teachings of Scripture, as I consider everything I have learned about the life of faith I think there is a next step. As Children of God we are blessed, we are given gifts, we are called to be thankful people. As Children of God we are called to respond to God's gifts. We are called and challenged to Be Generous. This, I think, is the natural culmination of our Thanksgiving cycle. When we see the world as a place filled with gifts and abundance, when our hearts are thanks-filled, when we are singing praises to God for what God has done, how can we help but be generous with the world around us? And so we share with the world those things that we have been given. It is my belief that when we do that we actually have a better life. Gratitude and generosity change how we see and experience the world.
And all that is great. It is a message that could (and has) been preached on many a Thanksgiving Sunday. But this year feels different. This year there are many voices out there pointing out the list of things not to be thankful for. This year there may be more people than usual questioning what we have to be thankful for. Then again, there are some of those voices every year.
So what do you pause to remember this year? What gifts have you been given this year? Why do you say thank-you to God in the midst of the chaos that has been 2020? How are you, how can you continue to be, generous?
Blessed Thanksgiving my friends.
--Gord
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