Thanksgiving

Wesley United Methodist Church Thanksgiving 11/25/99 II Corinthians 9:6-15 God gives so that we can give to others Have you seen that commercial for sausage, where the little deaf boy describes Saturday morning at his house? In sign language he explains that his brothers are awaken on Saturday as they hear their mother cooking sausage. Yet he doesn't wake up until the smell of breakfast hits his nose. I remember waking up like that as a child. I would hear the bacon frying in the pan, and smell the biscuits in the oven. I could hear her in the dining room, preparing the table and pouring the orange juice. That is the most amazing way to wake up. It is like ined in a happy story about the abundant wonder of the crops and animals of her farm. It is a story of an abundant faith in the midst of adversity. After 40 years on the farm, this is the year that they may have to finally make a decision to sell the farm and start a new way of life. Aldon must rent the land that his father once owned, because his father sold it to a Realtor before Aldon even had a chance to work the land. They have had to auction off the land in order to pay the debts of farming it, they have lost many of the new calves and kittens in a barn fire, Aldon, now 68 has failing health and is not able to work anymore. It has been Erna's farmer wife's faith that now sustains them. She is still able to work, but every year she is still able to keep her faith in the abundance of God no matter what the circumstances. The springtime seeds that she gets from God are an indescribable gift, because they always produce a thanksgiving faith. In the midst of this year, God has given us all some of those springtime seeds. There have been many things that have happen to us this year. We have made many investments into the future. Some of those investments have been financial, some have been professional, some have been for our personal benefit, some have been for the benefit of our family. Some have already paid off tremendously, some we may not see for years, some have been a complete failure that we will be paying for for the rest of our lives. Yet whatever the material loss of gain, they have all affected our relationship with God. Thus we have been given an abundance of faith if we learn to be thankful. For the children in the congregation, let me tell you a story. John went trick or treating this Halloween to get some candy. But when he got home he was a little disappointed. It wasn't enough, it would not last him until thanksgiving. So he hid it, and sure enough it was soon gone. George too went trick or treating. Yet unlike John, he was excited about what he got. He was so happy, that he was willing to share it with all of his sisters and brothers. He even shared his good fortune with his friends. As he was willing to share and sometimes even trade his candy with others. He got just as much as he gave away. Thanksgiving was here before he even realized it, and he still had plenty of candy. In The passage in Corinthians, Paul is trying to tell us that the seeds of hope that we have been give this year are for us to share with others. If we are not grateful for what we have, and we think that we have to store it away, then whatever it is, it will not go very far. But if we are grateful for what we have, and we are thankful and willing to share, then what we have will not only supply all of our needs, but it will help others too. The whole of God's creation, depends upon our ability to be thankful. Because it is in our thankfulness that we are able to give to others. It is all in our perspective. A youth group was going on a mission trip out of state when the bus broke d þ'N ° T› Ð ÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿ Ä$ B' €& Š& š& š& š& š& à=Ð/ Ð 8 d š& ÿÿÿÿ Ð ¬& – Â$ Rev. Harriette Cross Wesley United Methodist Church Thanksgiving 11/25/99 II Corinthians 9:6-15 God gives so that we can give to others Have you seen that commercial for sausage, where the little deaf boy describes Saturday morning at his house? In sign language he explains that his brothers are awaken on Saturday as they hear their mother cooking sausage. Yet he doesn't wake up until the smell of breakfast hits his nose. I remember waking up like that as a child. I would hear the bacon frying in the pan, and smell the biscuits in the oven. I could hear her in the dining room, preparing the table and pouring the orange juice. That is the most amazing way to wake up. It is like waking up in a cloud of love. I would know that my grandmother cared enough for me to start breakfast for me before I would even be woke to eat the wonderful feast that she had prepared. What a wonderful way to wake up. I think that coming to church on thanksgiving is a lot like that. Before we wake up, before we are even aware of what to be thankful for, before we even take part in the service. God has been with us and prepared this day and every day for us. Today is a day where the smells of food will be in the air all day. The smell of the turkey, the ham, the sweet potatoes, the dressing, the cinnamon of a dessert. The sounds of something stirring in a bowl, of extras being chopped up, of tables being set, of special drinks being poured. All of that will reach deep inside of us, and create memories of family togetherness, of special love, of the awesomeness of special times in our lives. Those feelings and thoughts will be with us, long after the food is gone. In the midst of the food is an indescribable gift, that gift is the experience of God. Coming to church is much the same way. Being with God and being able to give thanks, feeds our soul. And helps us to realize that we are loved and cared about. God gave us his indescribable gift. We are here because we realize that being able to give thanks is an indescribably gift. Our gratitude determines the things that happen to us in the world and the way that we are able to deal with them. Paul reminds the Corinthian church of the power of gratitude. They had been blessed to gather together as a church, they came to learn how powerful their faith could be if they just worked together. And they learned to recognize the spiritual gifts that are around them. Yet Paul has to remind them that they have been given these things, not just for the pleasure in their own lives. God had given to them, so that they would be able to give to others. I am reminded of a story that I read recently about a farming couple. Aldon and Erna Thieszen. They have been farming since the 50's. Aldon took over the farm that his father used to own. His wife, Erna says, each springtime, not only does the farmer have renewed hop, but the farmers wife experiences this also. As the seed bed is prepared, the seeds planted, the new calves and kittens are born, nurtured, and grow. The seeds that are planted represent more than just the crops that will come. The hope of a farmers wife, represents life for all of the world. Her hope for a new crop will not only produce food and clothing for her family, it produces food for the whole world. We are all dependent upon the crops that she is excited about in the springtime. the abundance of what God gives to them, God gives to all of us. The farmers wife's hope also plants the seeds of her relationship with God for the year. Edna goes on the say "WE both feel our faith in God has sustained us. God loves in all situations. God listens when I talk, to or with him. God pops ideas into your mind. God is our refuge and strength." You see, Edna's story of hope is not contaown. A man stopped and invited them to stay at his church for the night. He found a store that was open and brought them donuts and soft drinks. The next morning he called a mechanic and had the bud fixed. And as the youth group was pulling out of the parking lot, the leader commented to the man that he was go grateful for all that God had done for him. The man who had helped them, couldn't help but to think to himself, no it was me. I am the person who did everything for you, not God. Yet he realized that he couldn't say that out loud. Because it probably was God who called him drive down that road and see those people in need. I wanted to tell that story, because I wanted to ask you where you think God was at work in the lives of the people in the story. And if you were in that story, where would you be? Would you be the person who was able to help, or the teenagers in need? I think that it is all in our perspective. God was at work in numerous ways in that story in everyone's life. And we have all been on both sides of the story, this year we have been able to help, and we have been on need of the generosity of others. And in either case, it has been God who has deserved the gratitude for the action done. That is why I think that it is important for us to remember the hope of a farmers wife for this thanksgiving. This year as many of us enjoy an abundance of food. Remember that is has been her hope in the springtime seeds that has literally provided the potatoes, the yams, the green beans, the apples, the peaches or whatever other fruit or vegetable that we eat. It has been her hope in the calves, the piglets and baby turkeys that provided the main course of our sacred meal. It has been her abundance of faith that has provided the smells, the sounds, the thoughts and the feelings that will keep this day forever in our memories. God planted the seeds of hope in her life, so that they would be planted in our lives, and those same seeds have been planted in our lives so that we can plant them into the lives of others. The seeds of hope are God's indescribably gift. The ability to be thankful is God's indescribably gift? How can you pass it on? By saying thank you. nksgiving is a lot like that. Before we wake up, before we