Tag: Thanksgiving Day

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More Than Turkey Day

A man received a parrot as a gift. The bird had a bad attitude, and every word out of its mouth was rude.

The man tried to change the bird’s attitude by speaking politely, playing soft music, and teaching it a new vocabulary. Nothing worked. Fed up, the man yelled at the parrot. The parrot yelled back. He shook the parrot, but it became more rude.

In desperation, he shoved the bird into the freezer. For a while, the parrot squawked and screamed. Then it was quiet. Not a peep was heard for more than a minute.

Fearing he had hurt the bird, the man opened the freezer door. The parrot calmly stepped out and said, “I believe I have offended you with my rude and crude language. I am sincerely remorseful and I intend to do whatever I can to correct my bad behavior.”

The man was stunned. As he was about to ask the parrot what had so dramatically changed its behavior, the bird continued, “May I ask what the turkey did?”

With “turkey day” approaching, our thoughts turn to those quintessentially American traditions: football and feasting. Most of us have good memories of gathering around a table laden with sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, and of course, roast turkey.

When we were young, my brothers and I would spend the afternoon playing touch football with boys from the neighborhood. Pro football games were on tv, usually featuring the Detroit Lions and the Dallas Cowboys.

And there was “black Friday” shopping. People went to the malls to see and be seen. Movie attendance was up.

Maybe you have noticed. I have been able to write about the holiday without naming it. I do that to make a point. It is possible to enjoy Thanksgiving Day without expressing thanks. The media steer us from naming “the holidays.” Maybe that’s because “Thanksgiving” implies that there is One to whom we should be thankful.

With everything else we enjoy that day let’s call it what it is and use our freedom of speech to “praise God from whom all blessings flow.” Let’s teach our children the art of appreciation.

Let’s take time on November 28 to give thanks for America’s heritage of freedom and to pray that it will continue.

Pastor Randy Faulkner

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Five Ways to Give Thanks

It was Andre Crouch, I believe, who sang, “How can I give thanks for the things you have done for me?” We give thanks, if at all, in November, with the memory of pilgrims, and presidential proclamations, and cranberry relish. In America these days Thanksgiving is associated with feasting and football, and of course, with shopping.

Is there space and time in all this activity for the actual giving of thanks? Have we forgotten how to do it? Here are five ways to practice thanksgiving in this, and every season.

Remember. Think back and recall past influences and circumstances that have shaped your life. Think of the coalescing of events that God used to direct the trajectory of your life. Can you see the imprint of his goodness in your experience? Do you see how, even in the difficult times, he has caused things to work together for your good?

Mac Brunson wrote that a thankful heart builds your faith. It acts, he says, like a magnifying glass; thankfulness helps you see how God is bigger than your problems. Remembering and thanking God for his track record of faithfulness is a way to renew your mind.

Recite. Verbally recount your blessings: the freedoms you enjoy, the pleasures and prosperity you have been given, your family. These are gifts from God. Every day is a gift for which we should be thankful. We will never get to live it again. Speak to yourself about these gifts and then express your thanks to God.

Gather. There is a reason that Thanksgiving is the busiest travel season of the year. We look forward to returning home for sumptuous Thanksgiving dinners, as we hold on to family traditions and memories. One of those traditions in our  family is for the individuals, during the meal, to share some things for which they are thankful.

Many churches emphasize thanksgiving in worship during this season. How can we not gather in the Lord’s name to say thank you? As Annie Dillard put it, “I know only enough about God to want to worship him, by any means ready to hand.” One of those means is communion. Whenever believers gather around the table of the Lord, it is always a profound expression of thanksgiving (Eucharist) for his sacrifice on the cross.

Write. Write that letter, or text, or email, of appreciation you have been meaning to write. During the early months of the pandemic I took advantage of the enforced isolation  to write to some people from my past who had blessed my life in important ways. One of those people died unexpectedly not long afterward. I am glad I wrote that letter when I did to express my thanks for his influence and friendship.

Give. It is almost trite to say that this is a season of giving. But it is true. There is a relationship between thanksgiving and generosity. If you cannot give money, give your time. if you have limited time to give, give a smile and the gift of kindness. Your gift can be a thank you to God for all that he has given to you.

There is, in the Orthodox tradition, a worldview which calls for a “eucharistic spirit.” This is derived from the Greek word for thanksgiving. It is reminder that the created world is a gift from God, a gift of wonder and beauty. It is not to be exploited, but to be embraced, transformed, and returned to him in a spirit of thanksgiving. Human beings are “eucharistic creatures,” capable of gratitude and endowed with the power to bless God for his gift of creation. Let us thank God for his gifts this season “with eucharistic joy.”

Pastor Randy Faulkner

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A Little Spot of Heaven

A Little Spot of Heaven

Thanksgiving Day in America is not a religious holiday. It is a national holiday. The tradition dates back to the early settlers in the Plymouth colony when in 1623 they gave thanks to God for their survival in the wilderness of the new world.

Our first president, George Washington in 1789 and President Abraham Lincoln, in 1863, proclaimed national days of thanksgiving for God’s blessings on our nation. The U.S. Congress ratified a national day of thanksgiving in 1941.

The scriptures tell us that God has built thanksgiving into the structure of his world. From the beginning of Israel’s national life, thanksgiving was to be part of the essential nature of things. The third book of the Bible, Leviticus, prescribes the sacrifices and offerings that were essential to maintaining fellowship with God. These sacrifices provided covering for sin, making it possible for the people to draw near to God in worship and prayer.

Israel’s Thanksgiving Celebration

One of those offerings was the  “thanksgiving” offering, otherwise called the “fellowship” or “peace” offering. It was a voluntary expression of thanks to God for specific blessings, such as forgiveness, answers to prayer, deliverance from danger, or provision of daily needs. It was called the “peace offering” because it celebrated the believer’s peace with God.

In Leviticus 7:11-15 we learn that this was a festive offering that was shared with the priest who administered the sacrifice on behalf of the worshiping family. It involved a sacrificial lamb, and the preparation and consumption of bread made with and without yeast.

Imagine the Hebrew father gathering his family around him and asking them, “What has the Lord done for us?” We may imagine the children responding with memories of God’s faithful provision.

“God sent rain and sunshine and rebuked the locust so our crops would grow.”

“He healed Grandpa when he was sick.”

“He gave our soldiers victory over God’s enemies.”

“Our neighbors came and helped pull the ox out of the ditch.”

“Mama’s baby was born healthy.”

Then father might say, “We must thank God for these blessings. Thaddeus, go pick out the best lamb in the flock for the sacrifice and I will inspect it to make sure it has no blemishes. Tabitha, you help Mama prepare the bread for the feast and for the offering to the priest. Obadiah, run off to Grandpa’s house and invite him to join us for the thanksgiving offering and feast.”

The celebration began with the sacrifice of the lamb. The father would lead his little procession to the door of the tabernacle, lay his hands on the head of the animal and confess their sins. The animal would be killed and its blood spattered on the altar. Its internal organs were burned on the altar.  Their sins now covered, the family could joyfully celebrate their fellowship with the Lord.

The meat of the animal was divided and part of it was given to the officiating priest, along with the bread. This Hebrew Thanksgiving feast was celebrated by the family in fellowship with the priestly community, symbolizing their fellowship with God.

Examples from history

Israel’s national leaders set an example by observing the feast of thanksgiving. Moses “sent young Israelite men and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed young bulls as fellowship offerings to the Lord (Exodus 24:5).

When he brought the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem, “David sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings before the Lord” (2 Samuel 6:17).

When King Solomon dedicated the magnificent temple he built for the Lord in Jerusalem, the observance consisted of thousands of fellowship offerings (1 Kings 8:63).

During the great revival of Israel’s religion, King Hezekiah called on the entire nation to rededicate themselves to the Lord. “Come and bring sacrifices and thank offerings to the Temple of the Lord” (2 Chronicles 29:31).

When the people rebuilt the walls around Jerusalem after their captivity in Babylon, Nehemiah led them in a celebration of thanksgiving to God. “And on that day they offered great sacrifices, rejoicing because God had given them great joy” (Nehemiah 12:43).

This serves as an example for us now. Christ the Lamb of God is our sacrifice through whom we have peace with God. “In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence” (Ephesians 3:12). Because of this, we are able to “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for (us) in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:18).

The vocabulary of heaven

I read about an American ambassador who was giving a lecture on the work of the foreign service. He said an American embassy is a little spot of America set down in an alien land.

Our embassies have pictures of our national heroes and American flags throughout. Inside, American laws and customs are in force. The holidays and celebrations of our country are observed, including Thanksgiving Day.

On the streets outside there may be different laws and customs, but the embassy compound is a little spot of America set down in an alien land.

Thanksgiving is the vocabulary of the kingdom of God. In the kingdom age, there will be “the voices of those who bring thank offerings to the house of the Lord saying, ‘Give thanks to the Lord Almighty, for the Lord is good; his love endures forever'” (Jeremiah 33:11). 

This coming week, thanksgiving to God can be a little spot of heaven set down right here in our homes, churches and throughout our nation.

    –  Pastor Randy Faulkner

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