Reno UMC Sermon: 11-22-09

November 22, 2009
Rev. Judith Bither

Practicing Thanksgiving

One of the most memorable Thanksgivings I ever spent was when I was in seminary in the mid-70’s when I realized that I really didn’t know what it was to be hungry. How, I reasoned, could I really know what it was to be thankful? So I fasted for 24 hours before Thanksgiving and made an interesting discovery. All I could think about was food; at night I even dreamed about food.

But then I took it another step further. I had recently married, was newly ordained and appointed as a student pastor in Alameda. We decided to invite our parents and siblings to Thanksgiving dinner in our little parsonage and we prepared vegetarian lasagna. I remember that day being aware of life on so many levels, and being grateful for all of them. To tell the truth our parents thought we had all completely lost our minds and they all cooked turkeys the next day. But we felt we had made an important discovery about hunger and giving thanks. I felt affirmed as both a material and spiritual being. Since then I have usually had a more traditional meal, but have not forgotten that delicious vegetarian lasagna!

As we give thanks this week, we can follow Paul's admonition: "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice". We have much to rejoice about. We can fill ourselves with the true bread, the bread that lasts, the bread of life. We have bread to share, both spiritual and material. We can bring life in the midst of death. This week let us "make a joyful noise unto the Lord," and lift our voices in thanksgiving to God.

And let's remember that thanksgiving is a spiritual practice, something that is not for one day of the year, but something we can do daily. Time management expert Mark Forster suggests working on a project "little and often" rather than saving it up for one big push. We can take the same approach to thanksgiving. We can give thanks "little and often." In my own prayer time every morning I think about five things that happened the day before for which I am thankful. It positions me differently for the day ahead, and helps me be open to God's work in my life. It helps me worry less and appreciate life more. Once again in your bulletin you have a slip of paper where you can write a little or big thing you are thankful for. You can give these to an usher to go in the “Count Your Blessings” box, or bring it up yourself after worship.

It’s especially important that we count our blessings when times are tough. It’s easier to practice in the times of abundance, and yet then we often forget. When we say “thank you” to God—even in the midst of a crisis—it almost seems as if our worries subside. Perhaps this is so because we may remember how God has helped us in times past. There are examples of this from Genesis through Revelation!

With Paul, we can give thanks for our Christian brothers and sisters who support us, care for us, and point us to the true bread. Paul says to the Philippians, "I thank my God in all my remembrance of you", for they had provided both spiritual and material support for him.

Paul also wrote this: "Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things". Paul lists here a whole series of Greek virtues. These ideas he commended to his Christian audience, although their origin was not Christian.

Focusing on the virtues Paul lists--those things that are true, honorable, just, pure, pleasing, and commendable - is a related practice to thanksgiving. So much in our society focuses on the opposite. The media is focused like a laser beam on sniffing out lies, dishonor, and so on.

Eleanor Roosevelt wrote many years ago words that are just as true today: "We need imagination and integrity, courage and a high heart. We need to fan the spark of conviction, which may again inspire the world as we did with our new idea of the dignity and worth of free persons. But first we must learn to cast out fear. People who 'view with alarm' never build anything".

When we "view with thanksgiving" on a daily basis, we will be approaching life from a different perspective than when we "view with alarm." We will not bemoan the many challenges of our life and our world. We will discipline our minds to give thanks rather than bemoan. A friend of mine once said the church is like Eeyore in Winnie the Pooh, always saying, "It'll never work . . ." We can be more like Tigger, with hope, excitement, and exuberance as we embrace the practice of thanksgiving.

Elizabeth Gilbert in her book of spiritual exploration, “Eat, Pray, Love”, wrote about celebrating Thanksgiving in Italy. She introduced to her friends the common American Thanksgiving practice of going around the table to share what each is thankful for. In an international group, half the guests couldn't speak English, and the other half couldn't speak Italian. But somehow they all could communicate what was important, the sense of thanksgiving. She herself found it a profound experience to affirm her own sense of thanksgiving after several years of crisis and challenge in her life. As she concluded her words at that Thanksgiving dinner, she thought, "I hope nobody minds that I'm crying as I say all this, though I don't think they do mind, since everyone else is crying too".

So let us give thanks, not only on Thursday, the official Thanksgiving, but every day. As families and communities we might adopt this Thanksgiving dinner practice, not just once a year, but often. If we live alone or are eating alone, we can practice this discipline as well, considering before we eat what we are thankful for.

Autumn is the time in the northern hemisphere to celebrate God’s blessings of provision and to express gratitude for the harvest. Believers of various faiths in many parts of the world set aside a day to gather for feasts such as harvest-home, Ramadan, Feast of Tabernacles, Thanksgiving often displaying samples of the harvest—symbols of our gratitude to God.

The truth about thankfulness is that it should be more than a fleeting expression—it should be a life-style and attitude. You may call it an attitude of gratitude, as we sometimes hear it expressed. Biblical authors have recognized it as an attitude with life-changing power.

Recent studies suggest that there may be a direct connection between an attitude of gratitude and one’s state of health—not merely emotional well-being but actually physical health! Spiritual leaders have suggested for years that we make a mental list of all we can be grateful for before going to sleep each night will have a very positive impact on a person’s life and health.

For parents, a discipline of telling our children what we appreciate - not just asking them to do things or telling them what they are doing wrong - would also be valuable. This is a practice I am attempting to continue to cultivate with my young adult children and toddler grandchild.

What are you thankful for? How can you practice thanksgiving each day? Can we give thanks for and to each other for all the gifts we receive from each other? May we all rejoice in the Lord this Thanksgiving, and may we give thanks to God today and every day for the rich gifts we have received.

In Jesus’ name and for his sake.

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