Feast On Gratitude
Faith Perspectives – November 22, 2017

By Rev. Beverly Kahle
St Paul UCC, Nashville

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, so I get a little discouraged that sandwiched between Halloween and Christmas, it gets shoved to the wayside and its power is lessened. I blame a lack of marketing for this.

Halloween, you get the costumes, candy, and decoration sales that drive it, and, of course, the Christmas frenzy speaks for itself.

Macy’s has tried to elevate Thanksgiving with its famous parade, but instead, Thanksgiving is often relegated to a jumping off platform for the frenzied buying of Black Friday and the reminder that Santa is coming to town.

The idea of just being appreciative for all that we have been given and all that we are just doesn’t seem to generate market excitement.

I guess that is because being thankful is truly a form of anti-consumerism because you can’t buy gratitude.

True gratitude; true thanksgiving can only be authentic if freely given.

It seems like, rightly so, gratitude resists being given a price tag. So, we lose the advertising and the push to celebrate it.
Thanksgiving is really an attitude that we have to develop, not buy.

From a Christian standpoint, this day of Thanksgiving is in reality what we should seek to live each and every day as we are told in I Thessalonians 5.18; we are to “give thanks in all circumstances” all the time.

My prayer and hope for us all is that tomorrow we make the act of giving thanks the star of the day.

Give it center stage and do not let it be pushed to the side or forgotten completely in the rush to watch the football game or get a start on the shopping bonanza.

Before you sit down to whatever meal you share tomorrow, may you give thanks for all the many blessings that you have experienced.

Before you feast on the food, feast on gratitude first towards God, and then towards others.

May it be the best meal of the day!