Thoughts on Thanksgiving

Recently I watched a two part DVD, “Long Way Round” featuring the motorcycle travels of Ewan McGregor and Charlie Boorman as they traversed from the U.K. across Europe through Russia and ending in New York. The adventure was rigorous and to a risk taking adventurous spirit like mine, challenging. However, the language of Charlie Boorman was quite often offensive and especially coming out of the most difficult times of their journey through Mongolia and Russia.

What does this have to do with “Thoughts on Thanksgiving”? As I reflected on their journey and the increased amounts of stress they were under in the most difficult circumstances I wondered what made these travelers more debased in their use of language as they came out of these times of stress having accomplished something difficult. It seemed that the more stress they were under and the more difficult things became it would humble them and cause them to be more gentle, thoughtful and solemn but when they would make it through those times their exaltation was expressed in obscene and foolish talk. Why?

The conclusion I have come to is in the heart of pride. Pride is self exalting not self forgetting and others exalting. Pride is self focused and God forgetting refusing dependence on the only worthy exalted God. Paul speaking to Timothy in 2 Timothy 3:2 says, “For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful…”. Paul is telling us that not having gratitude is reflective of a heart of pride. And in Ephesians 5:4 Paul says, “Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.” Here he says that the ugliness of language is in contrast to the language of gratitude. If a person does not have a clear sense that all the difficulties they have come through are owing to God’s mercies, and rather look to themselves as one who has traversed the trials and come out on the other side then there is not gratitude but pride expressing itself in the ugliness of self exaltation.

Therefore humility before God and His sovereign mercies is necessary to fill our hearts with gratitude expressed in songs, prayers and words of praise and thanksgiving. The heart of the Christian must look back with clear thoughts of all the mercies of God as Creator, Sustainer, Provider and Redeemer to express in affections and words gratitude. If we fail to remember all that God has been and done for us to exalt Himself as our greatest treasure then the storehouses of gratitude will be bankrupt. If we fail to follow the rivers of His mercies back to the headwaters, springs and falls of His glorious mercies then fresh cool streams of gratitude will run dry in our hearts. And in those bankrupt and dry hearts will grow the ugliness of pride that exalts self and forgets God. The life of God in the soul of man is reflected in magnifying God with thanksgiving when the soul rises to the heights of God dependence for all that He has been for him in His triune nature.

God is carrying His church the “Long Way Round” through deep valleys and grand vistas, down rough roads and up smooth roads, through deep waters and along gentle streams, among hard people and gentle people, among different people and like minded people. But in all the circumstances, situations and relationships He carries her through “his mercies never come to an end, they are new every morning.”(Eccl.3:22-23) Therefore in the stresses and strains of trials, affliction and suffering the church can come forth in humility with hearts overflowing in thanksgiving. “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” (Col.3:16-17)