Thanksgiving

who’s at your table?

Posted on by Grace Day

I love Thanksgiving but I often feel it is the forgotten or most overlooked of the holidays. I mean, what’s not to love? Food, family, football enjoyed without the pressure of shopping for and wrapping all those gifts – it’s the practically perfect holiday. And yet Thanksgiving is barely noticed, squeezed between the hype and hoopla of Halloween decor and overindulgent candy consumption and the equally hyped and hooplaed decor and demands of Christmas. Thanksgiving has no yard decorations heralding its coming or arrival. No wonder we forget to be thankful for the many blessings that we take for granted until any one of them is suddenly taken away from us without warning. Then we realize just how fortunate we truly are.

This Thanksgiving weekend people are gathering together around the table with family and friends to share a meal. Some of us are the hosts and some of us are the invited guests. Which begs the question, who do we invite to share our celebration of Thanksgiving? Who do we give a seat at our table? Full disclosure – this is on my mind because I’m currently doing Giglio’s study entitled “Don’t give the enemy a seat at your table.”

I’m reminded that I choose every day who gets a seat at my table and my choice of dinner guests makes a difference in the outcomes of my life. Dining companions make a difference. Who knew? Well, the apostle Peter knew. He issued a clear warning, saying –

“Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8)

Message received – don’t invite him to share my meal or I will become the meal! I think this is what Mr. Giglio was talking about when he referred to not inviting my enemy to my table. My enemy is identified as the devil. He is not a presence I would want occupying a seat at my table. Consider his description in Revelation –

” . . . the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony;” (Revelation 12:10-11)

Do I want the enemy of my soul to have my ear? (which he will have if I give him a chair beside me at my table) No, because he will falsely accuse me since he is the father of lies. He will fill me with doubt and fear. He is not a good dinner guest. Why would I invite him in and give him access to my life when I know this about him? He is described this way in John by Jesus –

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10)

And what about all my enemy’s false accusations? The antidote to lies is truth. I need to hear instead these words of truth.

“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.” (Romans 8:1-2)

When I give the enemy a seat, he brings other unwanted guests with him to fill up any empty seats at my table. He invites in fear, doubt, despair, deceit, anger, envy – a whole host of unwelcome intruders that come to rob me of the life Christ died to give me. Instead of the enemy of my soul, I will intentionally invite the Provider of my feast to preside over the meal and partake of it with me. In Psalms it says this of the Lord who is my shepherd –

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” (Psalm 23-5-6)

When my Heavenly Father prepares the meal, presides over it and has a seat at my table, all the other seats are filled with the good guests He brings with Him. His everpresent Presence brings His peace, (not as the world gives) His protection, His abundant provision, His promises to me, His plans to give me “hope and a future”, His healing, His mercy, His joy and His comfort (isn’t that what the angel said to the shepherds, tidings of “comfort and joy”?) When I invite my Heavenly Father in and give Him a seat at my Thanksgiving table, my cup really does overflow as I give Him alone all my thanksgiving and all my praise. I simply –

“Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations.” (Psalm 100:4-5)

I most gladly and joyfully –

“Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name; make known among the nations what He has done. Sing to Him, sing praise to Him; tell of all His wonderful acts. Glory in His holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice. Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always. Remember the wonders He has done, His miracles, and the judgments He pronounced” (Psalm 105:1-5)

I’m so grateful to God that He is indeed the Provider and Preparer of my table and because my Heavenly Father has a seat at the table He has prepared for me in the presence of my enemies, it’s my table and I don’t have to give the enemy a seat at my table at Thanksgiving or at any other time. Good to know. The choice is mine who I allow at my God given table. Thank You, Lord. Your Presence fills my table with every good thing.

“You have made known to me the path of life; You will fill me with joy in Your Presence, with eternal pleasures at Your right hand.” (Psalm 16:11)

sincerely, Grace Day

most ironic post ever

Posted on by Grace Day

The other possible title for this post is “how I saved Thanksgiving” – but that seems a bit presumptuous if not outright unbelievable, so I went with the first title. Me, saving Thanksgiving? – that is definitely presumptuous, unbelievable and ironic all at the same time, because I am not, nor do I claim to be, any kind of a cook. And of course, Thanksgiving is all about the food. (although in Thanksgivings past, I have contributed the not too bad broccoli-rice casserole) Still, I would not come to mind even as a last resort to be the one to call upon to save someone’s Thanksgiving celebration.

Yet, just yesterday, I was someone’s last resort and I did save Thanksgiving, or so they said. Of course, there is a backstory which explains this weird yet true tale. It all started with a phone call very late on Thanksgiving Eve. It was my neighbors across the street. Their oven was not working and they were preparing their Thanksgiving feast for the following day. Their stove and all other appliances were working normally. It was just their oven that had quit working without warning, without giving advance notice that it would be taking the holiday off. (and of course their oven made this decision well after service businesses were closed for the night and for the holiday the following day)

So my neighbors called me, not in search of a cook, but of an oven available on the day when most ovens are working overtime. Not my oven, however. My oven was not booked. I was not cooking. I was traveling south to be with family on Thanksgiving Day. Therefore, I was more than happy to volunteer my oven’s services to my neighbors for the day. And so I did. I must say, when I returned that evening, my house smelled really good, still filled with all the good food smells of what had been baked in my oven during the day. I also received the bonus of a plate of food the next day. Who doesn’t love Thanksgiving leftovers?

My neighbors were grateful, saying I had saved their Thanksgiving. Who doesn’t like to be the hero from time to time? Having had a previous incident with their oven within the past year, my neighbors felt their oven was trying to steal their Thanksgiving, much like the Grinch, who attempted to steal Christmas from the Whos. However, it was really my oven that saved their Thanksgiving, not me.

Because I am not much of a cook, me saving anyone’s Thanksgiving is the height of irony. But here’s the greater irony of me writing this particular post. This post follows a post I wrote just mere days ago – “the joy of left hand/right hand living.” Now the message of that post is basically – do your good deeds on the down low, nobody else needs to know. And yet here I am sharing a good deed story with you all in my very next post? Now that’s irony that can’t go unnoticed nor unmentioned! Oh, how fickle the human heart!

So often others, including these neighbors, have come to my rescue. Often, others are the answer to my prayers of need. Therefore, it is a privilege when I get to be the answer to someone else’s prayer of need. It’s a joy and sometimes the joy just overflows and needs to be shared. I am grateful to have the opportunity to live out God’s instructions –

“Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” (Philippians 2:4)

“And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.” (Hebrews 13:16)

“If anyone has material possessions ad sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.” (1 John 3:17-18)

This oven lending wasn’t exactly a top-secret mission anyway. It was just an unexpected opportunity that presented itself. The Grinch wasn’t able to steal Christmas and my neighbor’s untrustworthy oven wasn’t able to succeed in stealing their Thanksgiving. Crisis averted. Holiday saved! It was fun and a joy to be a part of this rescue mission that saved Thanksgiving.

But now I must return to the left hand/right hand life of the everyday. I will take up invisibility and anonymity once again, as I go out in search of my next undercover assignment. But don’t expect to hear about it from me. I vow to maintain secrecy at all times in the future.

Happy Thanksgiving to all! May you find plenty of reasons to be thankful, as gratitude is the perfect heart preparation for the upcoming season of Advent.

“Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures forever.” (Psalm 136:1)

sincerely, Grace Day