A Thanksgiving sermon

(This was given at a inter-denominational service.)

THANKSGIVING SERVICE

 

       Do not 'worry', Jesus says in tonight's gospel. Do not 'worry' about what you should wear or eat. “Worry,” I believe, is the opposite of 'being thankful'. That is why Jesus tells us not to 'worry', because Jesus wants us to be thankful.

       In my tradition of Christianity, we celebrate the “Eucharist” on each of the Lord's days, each Sunday and many other times we gather as the People of God. “Eucharist” in Greek, means “to give thanks”.

       Giving thanks, it seems to me, is the very heart of being a Christian.

       The older I get, I have told people, the fewer things I find I HAVE to 'believe'. I think I've got it down to the basics of my creed.

       *God loves me (and US) unconditionally. Everyone, no matter how twisted, or even evil, is a child of God. I believe that.

       *Treat others as you want to be treated. No matter what. I believe that.

       *Welcome the stranger always, even if the stranger may mean you harm. I believe that.

       *Give to those in need—always and however you can. I believe that.

       *And this: be thankful always, for everything, even things that challenge you and give you pain. Be thankful always, for everything. I believe that.

       Not that many years ago, there was the song and the saying, “Don't worry, be happy.” I would change that to “Don't worry, be thankful. Always.”

       Consider the lilies of the field....Consider the birds of the air....

       Why should we worry? We should be thankful.

       In our Eucharist service, there is a prayer after communion. It is a prayer of thanksgiving. But it is very general. So often, I invite the congregation into a time of silence and ask them to give thanks to God in their hearts and minds, for the many gifts God has given to each of us and all of us.

       In my heart and mind, in that silence, I picture my family and my friends, the people of the congregations I serve and have served, my dog and cat and parakeet, the freedom and prosperity of my life, my life itself, and all the good those I know and love have done in this dark-ling world. I sometimes give thanks for Key Lime Pie and sausage gravy and biscuits, but the seems a little selfish.

       But that's the thing—being thankful for God's goodness isn't selfish at all. Key Lime Pie and sausage gravy and biscuits are gifts that merit our thanks.

       Remember, in my short list of beliefs, I said to be thankful for everything, always.

       It pains me, in a way, that we get so involved in being thankful in November of each year when we should be 'thankful to everything, always'. All the time. Every moment of life, we should be thankful.   

 

       Don't worry, be thankful.

       Consider the lilies of the field, consider the birds of the air...they do not worry, they do not fret. And we are worth more to God than flowers or birds.

       Be thankful.

 

       I practice the prayer of the heart—also known as the “Jesus Prayer”.

       It is a prayer of breath—and since we breathe always, we can pray always.

       The Jesus Prayer goes like this: as you inhale, you say in your mind and heart, “Jesus Christ, Son of God” and as you exhale you say, “have mercy on me a sinner.”

       It's that simple, as simple as breathing, which we do all the time.

       But some time ago, being an Episcopalian and not being fond of being reminded I am a sinner, I changed the way I prayed the Jesus prayer.

       I started saying, in my heart and mind, as I inhaled, “Lord Jesus Christ” and as I exhaled “thank you so very much”.

       When I'm driving, I pray that. I give thanks with every breath.

 

       We should, I think, give thanks, not just at this time of year, but with every breath.

 

       Why don't we try it for a minute or so? Join me in paying attention to your breathing, what keeps you alive. We should give thanks for breath as for so many things.

       Join me for a while.

       When you breathe in say in your heart and mind: “Lord Jesus Christ”. And as you exhale say in your heart and mind: “thank you so much”.

       Let's try it, if you don't mind.

       Inhale: “Lord Jesus Christ”.

       Exhale: “thank you so much”.

 

       Happy Thanksgiving to you all. Give thanks always. Don't 'worry', give thanks.

 

Amen

 

One of my surprises from cleaning up my office

                Almost two hours

I didn't think of you for almost two hours tonight.

You're away for the weekend.

I watched "House" on TV,

Cleaned the kitchen.

Made chicken salad with pickles for my lunch tomorrow.

I listened to the end of the Yankee's game on radio.

And watched it rain on the kitchen porch.

And, in all that time,

Almost two hours,

I didn't think of you once.

But, I wouldn't be writing this if

After that time

I hadn't thought of you then.

Lovingly.

4/28/08

Being surprised

 Surprised is not enough to gauge what I'm feeling.

Bern asked me, as I've told you before, to clean out my little office so she can re-arrange it.

I have only two more things to go through--a grocery bag full of pages and the files in my file cabinet that I haven't looked at for years.

I started with the file cabinet and found two things I don't remember writing from living New Haven nearly thirty years ago.

One is a novella called The Old Gods Go and a short story called Eliza like a light.

Reading them is like reading what someone else wrote.

How could I have forgotten writing them?

And they are only the first two things our of my file cabinet.

What surprises remain?

What lost words, forgotten words, will I find?

I feel like an out-of-body experience right now.

I'll share some of what I find, digging deeper into the past, here on my blog.

Watch for it.

 

 

Moving on

 In spite of the current president's whining and denying about the election, it is time to be moving on.

More and more Republicans are calling Joe Biden "president elect" and urging the transition to begin.

I grieve for the pain of those who support the lame-duck president, but it is time to move on.

There are bigger problems than a bad loser.

Covid continues to ravage the country.

Support of those hurt by these strange times needs to be passed by Congress.

A new cabinet needs back ground checks.

Racial issues must be addressed.

Immigration reform is sorely needed.

Student debt has to be addressed.

Making health care available to all Americans is vitally important.

Our foreign relations must be re-established with allies and enemies alike.

We must re-enter the Paris Climate Accord and the Iraq negotiations.

Things must be made normal after four years of abnormality.

It's time to move on.

It's time....

 

Living in the dark

 The sun sets a little earlier and the sun rises a little later for the next month or so.

We are living in the dark times.

Certainly the pandemic, racing out of control many places, makes us live in the dark.

And the current President's denial of the reality of the election and calling 'fraud' and 'rigged' puts our democracy in a dark place.

Tomorrow is the last Sunday before Advent.

Advent is a time of gathering darkness until, right near the end, the earth begins to tilt toward the sun and the Light of Christmas leads us to lengthening days.

Thanksgiving and Christmas will be very strange this year.

Rightly, the CDC is recommending not traveling.

The celebrations will be dark and lonely.

But the light will be returning as we move to a new year, a new president, a dawning of the trust in science to get us through this virus.

Do not lose hope in the darkness, my brothers and sisters.

The Light is coming.....

Peace be with you

In the Episcopal Church, we pass the peace each service.

We grip hands and hug and give gentle kisses on the cheek.

It is the highlight of the service.

But it is not possible in this Pandemic.

Many churches are doing zoom church.

I miss it so.

I heard it called on radio, "being touch deprived".

Bern and I touch and hug and kiss and put lots of touch and love on our dog, Brigit.

Churches I have served have extended the peace until everyone greeting everyone.

Easy enough in a congregation of 20-25. But at St. John's in Waterbury, when we had over a hundred, it took some time!

And I miss it so.

So, between you and me, in this virtual world: "The Peace of the Lord be always with you."

This is my virtual hug: (    )

 

It's all over...Now we need the shouting....

 The election is over...over...over....

Now the current president needs to give the President-elect access to the government to make the transition.

Today the current President fired the highest official on elections for saying this was the most secure election in history.

A day or so ago, he fired the head of the Defense Department and has now issued orders to bring troops home that even Republicans don't believe should be withdrawn.

And Biden still doesn't have access to the money in the federal budget for the transition OR any contact with national security brief-ers or with the Covid task force.

Enough is enough.

Aren't there enough Republicans in congress to stand up and say, "concede, Mr. President and let the peaceful transition begin"?

We are all in more danger each day that the in-coming administration is shut out of the insights they need to make a successful transition.

Enough is enough....Really!!!