Peaches or pumpkin? Summer or fall? Fireworks or Jack o’ lanterns? I’m a peach summer girl all the way. Lighting up the sky on the Fourth of July amazes me. Satanic things like faces carved into pumpkins creep me out. So, instead, I focus on gratitude all through the fall.
With enough whipped creme, I can thank God for vegetable pie instead of juicy, sweet peaches. And since there’s absolutely nothing hollowed (holy) about Halloween, it’s time to decorate my dining room table with a cornucopia and hang a posterboard on the wall to record the many things I am thankful for each day. Like my friend, Judy who loves sunflowers because they turn their faces to the sun, I want the sunflowers that light up fall to remind me to turn my attention the Son of God.
For me, Thanksgiving isn’t just a day. In my home—it’s an entire season. Isn’t a full season of gratitude a marvelous way to usher in the Christmas season? Count down time; tomorrow is two months until Christmas. So, my encouragement to you as the days grow darker and colder, let’s turn our faces to the Lord and give thanks. Let’s sow an abundant harvest of gratitude for all the Lord has, is, and will do. Jesus came, and He’s coming again!
An Excerpt from ChooseNow to Grow Grand, Not Old by Teri Gasser. Book on SALE now on Amazon for 33% OFF until November 26th!
Both of my grandmothers exercised wisdom when it came time to downsize and make a final move to be near family. However, only one seemed to take full advantage of the new possibilities. One event during a family gathering illustrates it best. It happened after our second Thanksgiving meal together.
I had spent much time and prayer preparing an activity for after the family feast. I wanted to facilitate a fun time of interaction between my mom, grandmas, and four children. Making gingerbread houses struck me as the perfect project, a sweet way to work together and prepare decorations for Christmas. I baked enough walls and roofs for four houses, one for my folks, one for each of my grandmothers to take home, and one for our house. Each of my kids paired up with a grandma, except Jenni. She got stuck with her mom, yours truly. It seemed to be going just as planned. I have pictures of everyone smiling. We licked frosted fingers and nibbled on candy, laughing and having a wonderful time. Then, when Anna and Grandma Erma finished basic construction and started decorating the outside of their house, Erma left the table. She went to the living room and sat in an easy chair.
(My grandma Erma with my daughter Anna)
Maybe she felt tired or bored. Maybe. Or maybe she didn’t like working with a twelve-year-old. Maybe my daughter and Erma had different ideas about decorating. We will never know because she never excused herself or explained why she left the table. Later, when the projects were complete, we took pictures. Erma refused to come and have her photo taken with Anna. My mom felt so sorry for Anna. To top it off, when it came time to send the gingerbread house home with Erma, she flat-out refused the gift—the gift I had prayed about and spent so much time and money preparing, the gift she worked on with her great-granddaughter. My grandma rejected a present intended to bring Christmas cheer to her home.
“Oh, no, you take it home,” she told me as I offered to take it to her car as she was leaving.
“But Grandma, we already have one,” I explained again.
“Well, Anna can put it in her room. I’d rather not have it, thank you.”
Ouch. I cannot judge Erma’s motives. I’ve already shared a few speculations. I can tell you her actions and words put a damper on the day. We never made gingerbread houses together again. Oh, my kids and I did, and sometimes my mom and Grandma Irène joined us, but not Erma. It never became a Thanksgiving tradition.
On the other hand, Grandma Irène paired up with my youngest, seven-year-old Jon. She kept that gingerbread house displayed in her apartment year-round for several years and bragged about it to everyone. That’s gratitude at its best!
God bless you as you celebrate Thanksgiving in a grand way!
TeaTime is a quarterly (February, May, August, and November) reflection on various qualties.
gra*tu*i*tea /ɡrəˈt(y)o͞oədē/noun 1. something given voluntarily or beyond obligation, usually for some service like being served tea then helping your hostess wash cups, or slipping a teabag into a thank you note.
As I sip and savor tea steeped from that surprise tea bag I found in a thank you note, I taste tangible evidence of my sweet friend’s appreciation. When we enjoy our favorite drinks at our local coffee shops, leaving the baristas a gratuity proves our thankfulness for their service.
Did you know God instituted suggested gratuities into the sacrificial system of the Law? He calls them thanksgiving sacrifices. Like tipping a waiter, these sacrifices were to be voluntary, “of your own free will.” Yet there is a clear expectation that if God’s people are thankful for His salvation, they will give above and beyond what’s required.
Do we? When God provides for us in a big way, do we use a portion of His gift to bless others? As we enter this season of Thanksgiving, let’s turn gratitude into more than lip service. Let’s give generously. Let’s share our abundance with those who serve us at church.
“Let him who is taught the word share in all good things with him who teaches.” Galatians 6:6
Let’s show our gratitude to Jehovah-Jirah by using what He’s given us to provide for the needs of brothers and sisters in the faith.
“Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.” Hebrews 13:15 – 16
Then we can continue giving gratuities to the Lord by providing for the poor beyond our church walls. Jesus reminds us, “The poor you have with you always” (Matthew 26:11), and the apostle Paul wrote, “that we should remember the poor” (Galatians 2:10).
How might our celebration of Thanksgiving impact our neighborhood if our celebration extended beyond a Thanksgiving meal? Wouldn’t flooding our communities throughout the year with outpourings of generosity glorify God more than an annual feast and statements of thanks? We could tip beyond 20% and include a Gospel tract (I’ve heard more than one waitress complain about the stingy after church crowd). Let’s not be them. We might make purchasing an item for our local food bank a regular part of our grocery shopping.
“It is good to give thanks to the Lord.” It’s even better when we confirm our appreciation with a gratuity.
Abba, we praise You for Your generosity towards us. We ask that You open our eyes to tangible gratuities we can leave in Jesus’s name throughout the year.
