Loving God, we give you thanks today for all good gifts, and especially for the gift of your Son, Jesus.  Renew our hearts and minds by the power of your Holy Spirit, that we might experience your love and your peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

    Thanksgiving comes around once a year.  As with many holidays, it often involves eating – gathering together with relatives or friends and sharing a meal – or, in some cases, a feast!  Some gather around the table and say what they are thankful for.  Often, lurking in the background, are memories – some of which are memories of good things, and some of which are sad memories.  It is a time when celebration and sorrow are all mixed together, as thankfulness is mixed in with the memory of those who are no longer there, and the tension that often shows up in families at holiday times bubbles to the surface.

    However, in the church, Thanksgiving is actually celebrated every week.  This becomes clearer once we understand that the word “Eucharist” actually means “thanksgiving.”  We have something called the “Eucharistic prayer” (or prayer of thanksgiving), which is part of something called the Great Thanksgiving.  And so, every Sunday, we gather around the table, having said what we are thankful for.

    At this table, everybody is welcome as part of God’s family, and so even those who don’t have many friends or relatives have a place at the table.  Some might have a hard time calling it a feast, as most of us get simply a little taste of the bread and the wine.  Yet, we also understand that in many ways this is only an appetizer – a foretaste of the feast to come.

    At this table, too, celebration and sorrow are all mixed together.  There is an awareness at God’s Table, too, of those who are no longer with us.  However, spiritually speaking, those people actually are here at the same table with us.  They are simply at the table on the other side of eternity, but all of us gather in the presence of God.

    At the same time, the memories that we share are both good and bad.  What happened to Jesus at the cross cannot be described as a good memory or a happy memory.  Neither is the memory of our own sinfulness a pleasant thing.  However, in both cases, we remember what God has done – how our sins have been forgiven and washed away, and how Jesus’ death and resurrection resulted in life for the world.

    When we worship, the things for which we give thanks tend to be things that happened in the past.  We give thanks for the way in which God called Abraham and Sarah and promised them new life.  We give thanks for the way in which God rescued the people of Israel from slavery in Egypt and fed them in the desert.  We give thanks for Jesus – for his birth, life, death and resurrection.  And even though these things happened in the past, they continue to affect us now and into the future, for in Jesus we find both salvation and eternal life.

    However, it can also be helpful to find reasons to be thankful in the present.  It is no accident that Paul writes to the Philippians about praying with thanksgiving and the peace that passes understanding all in the same breath.  When we are actually able to be thankful, it changes our whole attitude and outlook.  And so, I’d like to share with you what might be called a bit of a litany of thanksgiving today, in the hopes that it might also help you to identify reasons to give thanks.

    When I enjoy a good meal or a good cup of coffee, I am thankful, for I know that these things have come from God’s hand and that I am blessed to have food and drink.

    When I play hockey, I am thankful, for God has given me the physical and financial means to do so.

    When I come into the church and see the work that one of you has done, I am thankful, for so many of you give of yourselves in the life of this congregation.

    When I am able to give an offering, I am thankful, for it means that I have an income from which to give.

    When I think of you, I am thankful, for so many of you make yourselves a blessing in the lives of others.

    When I look at the beauty of creation, I am thankful, for God has created such an amazing and intricately connected world.

    When I remember the sorrows of the past, I am thankful, for God knew what was needed and what was best.

    When I remember Tabgha by the Sea of Galilee, I am thankful, for it was there that God restored my soul.

    When I think of you, I am thankful, for so many of you have given me the privilege of journeying with you through the ups and downs of life.

    When I remember all that God has done, I am thankful, for the Creator of the Universe has gone out of his way to give me life – and not just me, but all people!

    In thinking about this litany of thanksgiving, I am aware of those who seem to have far more sorrows and far less to give thanks for.  However, I am also aware that some of those same people are thankful for everything that they have and happy when they can give away even the smallest thing to somebody in need.

    At the same time, I can’t help but think of the apostle Paul.  Pretty much every letter he writes begins with some sort of thanksgiving – even when he is in prison or hungry or shipwrecked or suffering from a “thorn in the flesh” or recovering from his most recent flogging.  When he connects praying with thanksgiving and the peace that passes understanding, he is absolutely speaking from experience (Phil. 4:6-7).

    And so, today I invite you to share with one another the things for which you are thankful.  When you are able to do so, it’s good for the soul, and what is more, it is a wonderful antidote to worrying.  Notice too, that when Paul is writing about praying with thanksgiving and not worrying and the peace that passes understanding, he also writes about good things with which to occupy our minds.  “Looking for something to think about,” says Paul?  Think about things that are honourable and just and pure and pleasing and commendable and excellent and worthy of praise (Phil. 4:8).  Think about these things and live as followers of Jesus, and “the God of peace will be with you” (Phil. 4:9).

    And so,

“Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:6-7).

Amen.


Thanksgiving Sunday (C)                            Philippians 4:4-9
October 13, 2013                                John 6:25-35
St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church
Pastor Lynne Hutchison

© 2013 Lynne Hutchison  All Rights Reserved