Haven’t you heard? Virtue is in this season.
We may never see it reported through the media, but there is more good happening in this world than evil. There are more children smiling in this moment than any single one of us could fathom… and someone just fell in love, and someone just helped a stranger, and someone just scored a goal, and someone got their hearing back, and someone’s joking with their co-worker, and someone’s sitting in the kitchen, while the rest of the household sleeps, writing a poem.
-Who The Hell Do You Think? I’ll Give You A Hint: Starts With “Saul”, Ends With “Williams”.
So here we are again. The National day of thanksgiving has come and gone. This, my friends, is a special time of the year. This is the…(angels’ voices and spotlight, please)…Season of Giving! First, the season of giving thanks, now past. Indeed, we’ll not thank again until Mother’s Day—perhaps Passover or Easter if we’re feeling a little kinky.
Restricting biblical excerpts only to the New Testament, further to the epistles, and further still to Paul’s epistles, we can find passage after passage after passage where Paul expresses thanks, tells of the thanks he expresses daily, suggests and even commands thanksgiving. I only felt it necessary to quote three. Honestly, pick it up and read for ten minutes. You’ll see what I mean.
Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
“…always giving thanks…”
But wait, there’s more:
…you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
There, in that last paragraph. Did you see them? Not once, not twice, but three times he said it:
“be thankful”
“sing…with gratitude in your hearts”
“do it all…giving thanks”
But I’m not done yet:
Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.
Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you. Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other. And we urge you, brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone. Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else.
Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
“give thanks in all circumstances”?
“God’s will”?
Fuck.
So here we are, all busy complaining because gas prices are still a bit too high, the president’s a socialist, and property and stock values are dropping. Worse yet, we violate other commands like, “encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone,” “encourage one another and build each other up,” “Forgive as the Lord forgave you,” and “Submit to one another.” And we do so in the very act of the opposite of the giving of thanks. We complain that he doesn’t do his job or she talks too much or he came to church with booze on his breath. We complain and complain and complain and the only time we thank is when someone tugs at our emotions, the cashier gives us our change back, or the name of the day calls for it.
Of course, my use of scripture above indicates that I speak primarily to Christians, but this works for all of us. Every day is a day for thanksgiving. Every moment is a moment for gratitude.
Let’s transcend the standard set by our society and extend the season of giving thanks. Every day can be Thanksgiving Day. So why not?
P.S. Don’t worry. The Season of Giving is coming.