A Life of Thanksgiving

“ I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” John 10:10 Often people who are not facing death, talk about not being able to wait to get to heaven. Though I faced a strong possibility of dying from cancer, I could wait. I wasn’t in a hurry. I was still enjoying life and there was still so much more to do and to taste of life.

Life is a full, abundant, bountiful Thanksgiving feast. My life was a full and delicious, satisfying dinner. I was enjoying it and all it has to offer. I had yet to realize that it was a feast more than a dinner. What’s the difference you ask - a dinner is just a term for a meal you eat in the evening, but a feast is a special meal marked by an abundance of extraordinary foods that bring family together in unity. My life was mostly just a dinner. It could be over soon and that caused me to see the fullest abundance of living a life as a feast. I wanted to taste and see that dinner was good, but a feast was the best. “Oh taste and see that the Lord is good.” Psalm 34:8

In the feast of life, the turkey is in abundance and represents gratefulness and thankfulness. It’s size could feed a crowd. The meat of our spiritual lives is goodness, thankfulness and abundance so we may share with family and friends. We add the buttery mashed potatoes. Mashed potatoes hold everything together on your plate. They help balance the flavors of dinner. Jesus is the mashed potatoes (yes, I called Jesus a spud 😂) that holds everything together in my life. He’s the flavor and balance of life’s side dishes. Maybe sweet potatoes are like the sweetness and goodness of God. The vegetables are the nourishment of God. The stuffing is all the ingredients come together to form a dish of its own. The gravy complements everything and brings richness to everything in the meal. It covers everything bringing it all together. It “empowers” the whole meal. The Holy Spirit covers us and is the one who empowers me and brings richness to my life. We each have our own list of ingredients in our lives that makes us who we are.

Maybe there was a spice here or there I didn’t like or a so so side dish but overall it was a great, delicious, satisfying dinner – a great life. My life had some ingredients I didn’t always like either but when I ate it all together, I still had a great dinner.

I knew something even better would come next – dessert. I wanted to savor and enjoy Thanksgiving feast as long as I could. I wanted to enjoy life as long as I could. Eventually, dessert comes to us all. Dessert is the completion of a meal, symbolizing the joy and celebration of life, harvest and family. Spiritual dessert comes when we arrive in heaven. When dessert came there was no turning back but He pulled me back for “seconds” - for more. He pulled me back from the grave to enjoy seconds. I knew dessert was coming but not yet! “ Oh Lord, you have brought up my soul from the grave; you have kept me alive, then I should not go down to the pit.” Psalm 30:3 “God rescued me from the grave, and now my life is filled with light.” Job 33:28 (NLT)

The spiritual significance of life at Thanksgiving is to express gratitude for blessings, abundance and provision and to acknowledge God’s role in your life, and encourage a more peaceful, content, and faithful way of thinking and living life as a feast! Learn to enjoy every part of your life feast. Though I anticipate dessert, I must not place more emphasis on what’s for dessert than enjoying the feast while I wait. Though I anticipate eternal life in heaven, I will enjoy life while I’m here.

After Thanksgiving dinner and dessert is over, there’s always a time to reflect and enjoy what was good. At some point, our lives on this earth will be over and when we get to heaven, there will be a time of reflecting on how good our God was and is! “Come and gather for God’s great supper.” Rev. 19:17b (TPT) “To the end that my glory may sing praise to you and not be silent. Oh Lord, my God, I will give thanks to you forever!” Psalms 30:12 (NKJV)