And One More Thing

Last week the sermon focused on the imperative to rejoice in God's goodness and graciousness. This week, the rest of Philippians 4:4-7 unfolds what it looks like as a community that agrees together that God is near gathers and lives out it's life. It's a community that has a certain kind of quality about it, one that knows it doesn't have to hold back when it comes to being honest with God, and one that finds a rich experience of peace in the process. From celebrating God's grace, to noticing what it looks like to live in the awareness of that grace, these two sermons make nice bookends for the celebration of Thanksgiving.

The text we continue with for this week is:

4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4 - TNIV)

If you'd like to listen to Pastor Chris' sermon, "And One More Thing." click here.

After you reflect a bit on the text from Philippians above, spend a little while with Psalms 118 (to the right). Notice the parts of the song that speak to you the most profoundly, and which stir something within you. What do you find the psalm bringing to expression in your own life? What do you find it nudging you towards?

Psalm 118 (TNIV)

(One person's expression of what living out "Thanksgiving" looks like)

1 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;

his love endures forever.

2 Let Israel say:

"His love endures forever."

3 Let the house of Aaron say:

"His love endures forever."

4 Let those who fear the LORD say:

"His love endures forever."

5 When hard pressed, I cried to the LORD;

he brought me into a spacious place.

6 The LORD is with me; I will not be afraid.

What can human beings do to me?

7 The LORD is with me; he is my helper.

I look in triumph on my enemies.

8 It is better to take refuge in the LORD

than to trust in human beings.

9 It is better to take refuge in the LORD

than to trust in princes.

10 All the nations surrounded me,

but in the name of the LORD I cut them down.

11 They surrounded me on every side,

but in the name of the LORD I cut them down.

12 They swarmed around me like bees,

but they were consumed as quickly as burning thorns;

in the name of the LORD I cut them down.

13 I was pushed back and about to fall,

but the LORD helped me.

14 The LORD is my strength and my defense;

he has become my salvation.

15 Shouts of joy and victory

resound in the tents of the righteous:

"The LORD's right hand has done mighty things!

16 The LORD's right hand is lifted high;

the LORD's right hand has done mighty things!"

17 I will not die but live,

and will proclaim what the LORD has done.

18 The LORD has chastened me severely,

but he has not given me over to death.

19 Open for me the gates of the righteous;

I will enter and give thanks to the LORD.

20 This is the gate of the LORD

through which the righteous may enter.

21 I will give you thanks, for you answered me;

you have become my salvation.

22 The stone the builders rejected

has become the cornerstone;

23 the LORD has done this,

and it is marvelous in our eyes.

24 The LORD has done it this very day;

let us rejoice today and be glad.

25 LORD, save us!

LORD, grant us success!

26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD.

From the house of the LORD we bless you.

27 The LORD is God,

and he has made his light shine on us.

With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession

up to the horns of the altar.

28 You are my God, and I will praise you;

you are my God, and I will exalt you.

29 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;

his love endures forever.

Exploring the Stories behind our Celebration of Thanksgiving

If you'd like to explore the history behind the celebration of Thanksgiving here in America, here are a couple of sources you might find interesting:

The parts of the story we are most familiar with
The parts of the story that we are least familiar with, but which are still well worth knowing
Something that may not have actually been part of the story, but still nice to think about : The myth of the 5 kernals

A few questions / thoughts for further reflection as we think about the idea of Thanksgiving as it expressed in scripture, and what we can learn about what we celebrate in the Thanksgiving season:

How does it happen that those who have known what it is to be treated badly because of their own religious convictions or lifestyle patterns, when the tables are turned, so easily slip into the same pattern when it comes to others who see things differently than they do?
How could an intentionally cultivated attitude of thanksgiving, and a genuine realization of how we are all the recipients of truly amazing grace, keep us from slipping into attitudes of entitlement and superiority that poison our relationships with others? What might have been different about the history of our country if the first settlers here had done this?
Where are the places in our own lives (individually, as a family, as a church community, as a nation, as _______________) in which we are most in danger of not allowing all the implications of what it means to live in the realization of grace to get lived out in the ways we treat others?
Where are some of the places where you have seen, not only individual lives be transformed by gratefulness for the gift of God's grace to us, but also the way people interact with each other as well?