Dean Angell:
About 6 weeks ago, our Programming Team was sitting around trying to figure out what to communicate this Thanksgiving. Now.Our normal approach has been to just spend some time, reminding all of us how blessed we are to live in Canada and how much we have and that if we simply counted those blessings, we would truly be a thankful people this Thanksgiving weekend.Well, that's very true.
However, when we had that programming meeting, it was late August and harvest was in full swing in Saskatchewan.and it's been a very quick and meager harvest.The drought we have all felt this summer has hit farmers the hardest of all. Cereal crops that normally run 40 to 50 bushels/acre are running 15 and oil seed crops are dismal at best. In a lot of cases, across Saskatchewan, farmers have more input costs this year than they will see at the end of harvest. In other words, thousands of farms will loose money and will face a very uncertain future.
It was with that in the forefront of my mind that I came into that meeting about this Thanksgiving weekend. And then others began telling stories about people in this faith community that had lost loved ones this year, and others who were facing grave illness and still others who were facing relational, financial and marital struggles. (Since that meeting as well, the tragedy of Sept.11th has become so prevalent and real in our minds.)
Well, after a few minutes in that meeting, all of us were thinking the same thoughts and then saying the same words - How can we talk to or address all the hurts and questions life brings and still be a thankful people?
Listen to these verses that address this same issue from ancient days in Israel. Habbakuk 3:17-18. The prophet here still affirms to God and to the people that even during a season of grief and loss that he would still rejoice in the Lord. So if any of you are finding life a very large challenge these days, or today if you've come here struggling to find a thankful heart, this service will help you answer your questions. Our purpose today is to connect you to the truth about Thanksgiving.
Lee Barbour:
Hab 3:17-18 'though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines.. yet I will rejoice in the LORD
Prayer .
Last Saturday was my birthday and I treated myself to a wonderful gift. I spent all day riding my bike along the riverbank, stopping to look at leaves, sip strong coffee, and read books. Dean, does life get any better than that?
Now I need to tell you - it had been a while since I had sensed God's presence. In early morning fog mantled the fields and everything was still in the cool mist. Later I sat at Cranberry flats and watched geese fly overhead, watch the sun dance off the water, saw the leaves inflamed with the colours of a midnight bonfire. And as I rode my bike, sipped coffee, and read a new favourite book I couldn't help but do one thing - I had to express thanks to God for giving me such a wonderful gift. And then, do you know what happened next? God showed up. It was like a veil lifted from my eyes like fog rising the South Sask River - it took thanks giving to open my heart and show me he had been there all along.
Ps 50:23 states: "He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me, and he prepares the way so that I may show him the salvation of God."
Just like the thanksgiving chair - the poet's promise rings true. The way of Salvation appears when we sacrifice thank offerings.
As I rode around on my bike that day I thought a lot about thanksgiving. What is thanksgiving? Why is thankfulness such a key trait of those who choose to follow Christ? How do I express my thanks to God?
I am going to take you a little sideways on this topic and I hope you will stay with me, because one of the first things that struck me was that 'Thanksgiving' is really not so much a noun as it is an object and a verb. Our object is thanks ... it is done by giving.
We are not a society known for its generosity. We live in one of the most affluent societies in the world and throughout history. Yet, in spite of this, we give away only one or two percent of our income. Ironically, people with much less actually give more. Obviously giving has very little to do with ability to give.
I want to read a description of a people that understood thanks giving. In 2nd Corinthians we Paul writes:
- 2 Cor 8:1-9 . we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints.
- Paul goes on . just as you excel in everything-in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us-see that you also excel in this grace of giving.. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.
- In the next chapter he writes; 2 Cor 9:6-11 Each should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. .You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.
The Macedonians had been one of the most affluent people of their time. Their country was the home of Alexander the Great, world conqueror. But their scriptural fame is not based on an affluent history, but on their great desire for the 'privilege of giving' with overflowing joy, out of extreme poverty. They had discovered the secret about thanks giving. What was it? What is the purpose of thanks giving in our lives?
I am going to ask you 3 questions to help us answer that question.
First - What is God like? What is the very essence of God? Nancy Yee asked me this question last week and I failed so don't feel bad if you don't know. The very essence of God is love. And what is the singular mark of the love of God? Isn't it giving? In churches we hear people talking about God's Grace. The word GRACE means god's free gift of his love to us.
You remember John 3:16 'For God so loved .. He gave".
In Ephesians Paul tries to describe the richness of God's generous grace and love when he writes:
- Eph 2:1-10 . because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ . -it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms ., in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
So the answer to the question; 'What is God like?' is that he is love - a love marked by rich generosity as he pours out his grace into our lives. God is pure love expressing himself by giving. God's love is never simply emotion . it is always love in action.
Second question? Remember Psalm 50? What did the Psalmist mean by 'salvation'? What is God's Salvation?
Let me be clear. Salvation is not simply conversion. It does not end with you praying to become a Christ follower.
One key aspect of salvation is that it is the ongoing work of God's grace in our lives so that we are transformed - into what? Transformed to become like God. Our character becomes love - pure, generous and free.
We had a pastor that used to say: 'Who God is he desires his people to be". Our Salvation is all about a miracle in which God restores his image in our lives. God is Love. So may we be.
Third question? How does this transformation happen? How do we become like God? How do we learn to love as he loves? Simple really. We become like God by doing what God does. We learn to express love by giving.
You see thankfulness is not an obligation or duty. Thanks giving is a gift, first to those that give. Jesus himself said it is more blessed to give than to receive. The Greek word used here for 'blessed' literally means 'fortunate'. You are fortunate to be enabled to give.
Isn't it God who gives us a sense of compassion for others? Like the outpouring we saw for the victims of the attack on New York. Isn't it his grace that leads us to gratitude, helping us find the motivation to offer thanks giving? God repeatedly offers up to us the greatest privilege he can imagine - the opportunity to be like him by giving from hearts of love.
You see, as we respond in obedience to his invitation to offer up our gifts and thanks to him an amazing thing happens. Like the Macedonians we discover the privilege he gives in giving. Our desire to give grows, and soon we have a growing passion to offer back to God more and more of what we have and ultimately who we are until all we have and all we are is cast at his feet in gratitude for his grace and love. It is the Salvation Jesus called us to when he said we need to lay down our lives.
We are a people raised on science. We believe it is most important to get the theory correct - practice is optional. Folks, Christ following is not about spiritual theory. It is about learning an art - the art of loving. And there is no teaching more common in scripture than that we learn to practice being like God by loving those who God loves - our neighbours.
Let me giving you a warning here. Don't give from a sense of guilt, obligation or duty. Never. Still your soul and listen. Do you hear it? A still small voice. When you feel the smallest spark of gratitude, the smallest pang of compassion know it is God's voice and for God's sake respond.
As you fan the flame of that obedience fire will grow. You will be transformed and experience Salvation. You are on your way toward being recreated into the very image of your heavenly father. And know this. As you respond in obedience God channels all the power of heaven to assist you. The passage in Corinthians says that God will go out of his way to 'make all grace abound in you so that you will abound in every good work'.
Why is thanks giving such a big thing with God? Why does he go out of his ways to set us up to succeed? Basically, because we need help. We are up against a powerful and dangerous enemy - hearts that are broken.
I like to imagine it like this. Can you remember some B grade sci fi movie or old star trek episode where the humans are attacked by bizarre creatures than stick to them and suck out their life energy ... they are impossible to pull off. Some of you old timers may remember the story of Briar Rabbit stuck fast to the tar baby. The more he struggles the more he is stuck. For me it is Saran wrap. Every time I head to the pantry to rip off a piece of Saran wrap to cover some leftover meatloaf, before I know it, I don't have control of the Saran wrap it has control of me.
Folks, affluence is not a blessing. Can I say that again - our affluence is NOT a blessing. Your health, and ability to work and care for yourself is a blessing... but excess wealth is not. It is like those creatures that fly and stick to you. You need some way to keep the grip of wealth at bay - because if you don't it will destroy your heart.
Christ said: "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy . But...in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, . For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
The famous Scottish pastor and novelist from the late 1800's, George MacDonald, wrote:
'Is the Lord saying that the reason for not laying up treasures on earth is because of their transitory and corruptible nature - that the moth and rust and thief will cause us to lose them? No. He adds for. "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also". What is with the treasure must fare the same as the treasure. The heart that haunts the treasure house where moth and rust corrupt . will itself be rusted and moth eaten." (George MacDonald -Knowing the Heart of God by M. Philips p. 266)
Offering up our thanks and gifts to God is his gift to us . a gateway that we can choose to walk through that will transform our lives and protect our hearts from becoming rusted and moth eaten.
Now remember I said that God's transformation of you was only one aspect of Salvation? Here is where it gets really exciting - you know with God there is always something more. Even the wonderful news about our personal Salvation is not all there is. You see God is not only going to transform you he is going to transform others through you and our entire world as well.
You remember the prayer Christ taught us - Your Kingdom come, your will be done . where? . on Earth as it is in Heaven. This is the icing on the cake, the whipped cream on fresh strawberries, the piece de resistance.
MacDonald describes exactly this process in a story about a wise prophet speaking to his friends about 'divine service'. What does it mean to serve God - to give to God? Listen in to the words of the prophet:
". I believe that true and genuine service may be given to the living God. And for the development of the divine nature in man, it is necessary that he should do something for God. And it is not hard to discover how, for God is in every creature and in their needs. Therefore, Jesus says that whatever is done to one of his little ones is done to him. And if the soul of a believer be the temple of the Spirit, then is not the place of that man's labor-his ship, his bank, his laboratory, his school, his factory-the temple of Jesus Christ, where the spirit of the man is at work? Mr. Drew, your shop is the temple of your service where the Lord Christ ought to be throned. Your counter ought to be his altar, and everything laid on it with intent of doing as you can for your neighbor, in the name of Christ Jesus."
"You will not become a rich man, but by so doing you will be saved from growing too rich and you will be a fellow-worker with God for the salvation of his world." (George MacDonald - The Curate's Awakening taken from Knowing the Heart of God by M. Philips p. 318)
You see in God's amazing plan, not only is your life transformed but a cycle is initiated in which the Kingdom of God expands. Your thanks giving leads to thanks which leads to giving which leads to more thanks and so on. We all know how evil spreads - like ripples in a pond (rude driving, leads to gestures, leads to road rage, leads to death ) Why wouldn't good be even more powerful?
You may have seen 'CARE Ministries in our church take on a higher profile this year. Yellow bags like Royal Bank commercials are seen all over the church these days.
Now here is something you need to know. The primary spiritual role of the care ministry is not to meet the needs of the less fortunate, it is to serve you.
Our hearts are in critical danger of becoming moth eaten and rusted out. Many of us are so nearly gone we can hardly think of a specific way to be thanks givers. We struggle to hear God's voice and frankly our heart needs life support.
Care ministry is there to teach us how to be thanks givers. Get involved. Learn to see how thanks giving can transform lives. Particularly your own. We all need practice don't we?
Practical Expression . The worship team is going to lead us in a minute in songs of worship and praise and we will be able to practice thanks giving. But you know - Barbour always wants to try something different. Now bear with me.
I want you to exercise your gift of thanksgiving in a practical way. I would like you to take out a looney, a tooney, or some loose change. Save the big cash - just take something small. Just as anything we could offer to God in thanks is miniscule relative to the richness of the grace he lavishes on us so I want you to take and hold in your hand a symbol of your thanksgiving. If you don't have a loony or toony then borrow one from someone near you - please feel free to take one from an usher walking by.
As we worship together I want you to hold your offering tightly in your hand and think about one thing for which you are deeply and truly thankful. Then, as a symbol of that thankfulness I want you to step out of your pew and walk up and place your offering of thanks in the baskets on the front altar.
You know in African churches people often dance to the altar to give their offering. We want to celebrate this morning. Let's rejoice in our thanks giving. Dance, walk, high five, hug someone on the way, do as the Spirit leads - but if there is any thankfulness in your heart, step out as we sing and offer it back to God.
Come as we worship - lets practice being thanks givers.
I don't have any idea how much money there is on this altar. I would suspect something in the hundreds of dollars. Do you know what we are going to do with it? We are going to give this to the CARE ministry and have them pass it on to a single mom (or family in need) within our church.
In place of overly stretched bank account, a car sitting idle for lack of repair, no evening out in months, no lessons for a son or daughter, or clothes that frankly just won't make do anymore .. In place of all these there will be a bit of financial freedom. Today they will have something extra and they will be experience thanks. Can you imagine? A ripple is forming on the pond as we speak.
Here is the lesson. God not only transforms our lives as we respond to his gracious gift of grace. He also uses our obedience to transform the world around us (including the world of a single mom) so that thanksgiving peels from every steeple in praise to God.
Now - that you have practiced, let us close this service with offering our gifts and our praise to God as we take up the real, not practice, offering. Feel free this time to give as much as you would like.
Happy Thanks Giving Everyone.
Benediction:
Hear this Benediction from the writings of George MacDonald:
"Nothing .. so much as humble ministration to your neigbours, will help you to that perfect love of God which casteth out fear; nothing but the love of God - that God revealed in Christ - will make you able to love your neighbour aright. And the Spirit of God, which alone gives might for any good, will by these loves, which are life, strengthen you at last to believe in the light, even in the midst of darkness.
Amen.
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