My dear Lord, thank you for the holiday of Thanksgiving as we share it today. What began centuries ago as a joyful expression of dependence on you still echoes among us today.
Thank you, Lord, for sharing yourself with us. You capture us in the communion of your eternal mutual love through our union with Jesus by the Spirit. That love is too much for us to grasp in a given moment but our ongoing discoveries draw us ever closer to you.
I also thank you, Lord, for your honesty. In the Scriptures you always tell us the truth. You don’t pull any punches in stirring, confronting, and comforting. Our faith in you grows as we discover more and more of your reality in place of our fallen fantasies. And the embrace of your truth and love is as comforting as the hugs any parent ever offered.
Thank you, too, my God, for your wisdom. You know how to reach us and speak to us even at times when we prefer to be obtuse and stubborn. You know how to puzzle and intrigue us to draw us out of our sin. We bow before you as we find how out of touch we once were and how much your reality now frees us to be wise in you.
Thank you as well, Lord, for the bonds we have not only with you but also with so many others who love you. A gathering of Christians who now are defined more by the selfless love of the cross than by the selfishness of the past is a bit of heaven on earth.
Thank you especially that we get to be “children of God” with all the honor, nobility, and privilege it offers. You are gracious beyond words: thank you so very much!
Amen.
Amen.
Amen, amen. 🙂