Talking Turkey & Settling Old Scores
The holiday season has begun… and folks are scrambling to pack suitcases, fill refrigerators, prep for the annual Turkey Trot and place DraftKings bets for Thursday night football. (Gambling problem? Click here. < Not kidding.)
Families will soon gather around the table (or TV, as the case may be) and observe an all-American holiday:
Thanksgiving.
(Cue the dysfunctional family jokes.)
For some, that will mean braving the mad rush at ALDI/Costco/Walmart (God, help us)… or traveling long distances by plane/train/automobile… or setting an alarm for 3:30 am to thaw/smoke/roast/fry a turkey… or wrangling overstimulated/overtired toddlers who are sugared up and melting down – even before pie.
Hosting a houseful of family, friends, neighbors and stragglers always has the potential for spills, chills or hot flashes (depending on age and thermostat settings), brooding teens and barking dogs, flight delays or food poisoning, small house fires or big drama.
Because people, weather and kitchen appliances can be wildly unpredictable.
Let us pray.
Lord, relieve my stress, bless this mess and – after the last dish is put away – give me some REST.
Undoubtedly this Thanksgiving, there will be some who count blessings and others who air grievances. Some who want to build bridges and others who’d rather burn them. Some peacemakers and some pot-stirrers. And a whole lot of left/right wingnuts.
Careful, your politics are showing. (Might want to tuck those back in.)
On Thanksgiving every year, a few things become crystal clear:
God is great.
Pie is good.
People are crazy.
(Or… quirky.)
Side note – If you’ve got a no-drama Mama, you are incredibly blessed. Thank God… then lift your head and thank her.
The truth is – whether your family is large or small, close-knit or far-flung, genteel or a little rough-around-the-edges, there will inevitably be trouble or turmoil at some point.
Because nobody’s perfect.
We hurt each other; then we do it again. (Just like Bono said.)
People bring all sorts of sides to family gatherings: Cranberries and cutting remarks. Glazed carrots and hot gossip. Creamy corn casserole and biting sarcasm. Sweet potatoes and subtle manipulation. Homemade pumpkin pie with a dollop of fresh hypocrisy/arrogance/passive aggression.
(Tums, anyone?)
I’m not sure what you’re planning to bring for Thanksgiving, but you know what I think every person in America craves?
Extra helpings of mercy and grace.
The problem is, most of us want seconds… but we’re not so generous when we’re dishing it out.
When I screw up, I want compassion, kindness, forgiveness. I’m a shameless beggar for mercy when I’m the one who did wrong. But for some reason, when someone wrongs me, I become a card-carrying member of the Justice League… or an Avenger, ready to punish the offender swiftly and severely. I wish it weren’t so.
But when I’m the one who did the harmful/horrible thing, I want the person I hurt to reach out to me, reassure me of their love, extend forgiveness for my offense. I want to move forward without faking that we’re OK. I want to know our relationship is intact… unmarred… unscarred.
Remember the verses you’ve heard a dozen times (usually at a wedding)…
Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. ~ 1 Corinthians 13:4-5 (NLT)
That’s the very definition of love: patient, kind, not jealous, boastful, proud or rude.
Whew.
Not demanding or selfish or irritable. And… it keeps no record of being wronged.
Wow.
Pretty tall order.
(Venti cup.)
So… I guess it comes down to this.
Do I really love these people around the table? Family, friends, neighbors, stragglers? Because if I do, I need to expunge the record.
You must be kind to each other. Think of the other person. Forgive other people just as God forgave you because of Christ’s death on the cross. ~ Ephesians 4:32 (NLV)
Surely each of us can drum up five turkey-feather-fingers of thanksgiving for the mercy God extends to us… Maybe this is the year, we finally open our hands and share it.
Because forgiveness is the only path to peace.
Even when our anger is fully justified and righteous (after assault or abuse), we have to guard against festering bitterness.
Because that s#*t will kill you.
You are the people of God; he loved you and chose you for his own. So then, you must clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Be tolerant with one another and forgive one another whenever any of you has a complaint against someone else. You must forgive one another just as the Lord has forgiven you. ~ Colossians 3:12-13 (GNT)
Mercy triumphs.
And forgiveness sets us free.
Now that’s something to be thankful for.
Wendy
