Giving and Thanksgiving

Because of what God has done for us through Christ, we can reach out to serve other people in His name, which produces thanksgiving toward Him. 2nd Corinthians 9 says:
10 Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, supply and multiply the seed you have sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness,
11 while you are enriched in everything for all liberality, which causes thanksgiving through us to God.
12 For the administration of this service not only supplies the needs of the saints, but also is abounding through many thanksgivings to God...

We have been given so much in Christ - Ephesians 1 tells us that we have been blessed with all spiritual blessings.  And, it's important that we express our thanks to God - verbally, yes - and also through the way we serve.  If we love Him, then He gives us the capacity to love other people and to spread His love through service.  If we are thankful, then we can help to produce thanksgiving in the hearts of others.  We can be responsible, in partnership with the Holy Spirit, with helping to create an atmosphere of thanksgiving around us.

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In Colossians 3, I believe we can see the correlation between giving thanks and giving of ourselves:
15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

Tomorrow, we will take the opportunity to give thanks to God for His blessings on us.  We have been a nation that has been abundantly blessed, and we can search for ways individually to reflect on how perhaps resources we have been given can be used for the glory of God.

Perhaps we have excess in our lives.  How about plastic excess?   Did you know that, according to the non-profit organization, Plywood People, based in Atlanta, that 8 billion dollars in gift cards go unused every year?  

Jeff Shinabarger has been a guest on my program - he is the founder of Plywood People, and he and his wife, Andre, according to the ministry website, attended a gathering and asked 8 people how much money in unused Gift Cards they had with them and walked away with $50 in Gift Cards to help people in need.   The outreach of Gift Card Giver was born.  The site states that since its inception, they have given away over $200,000 to over 150 stories.

Some examples include:

Gas Cards matched with a family driving from Alabama to Boston for medical treatment.

Ice Cream matched with a children’s after school program.

Restaurants matched with non-profit volunteer programs.

Phone cards matched with women rescued from a trafficking situation, being reunited to their families.

Department Stores matched with a family of 12 devastated by a house fire.

The organization encourages people to have "gift card parties," where people gather, bring their cards, and play card games.  They have also designed gift card jars.

Excess.  Perhaps there are areas where you have too much...what a great opportunity to give!  And, to give thanks for what God has given to us so we can bless others.

This same website tells the story of Joshua Becker, founder of the website, Becoming Minimalist.  This effort was inspired by the simple task of cleaning out the garage.  Becker relates:

Our lives were typical: work hard, make money, spend it on the mortgage, fashionable clothes, nicer cars, cooler technology, and more toys for the kids. But when everything from my garage was piled high in the driveway while my son sat alone in the backyard, it was a conversation with my 80-year old neighbor that opened my mind to a new way of thinking. She said it like this, “Maybe you don’t need to own all this stuff?”

And that is the last statement my old-self remembers hearing.

A minimalist was born. Her simple question prompted a life-changing realization:

Everything I owned had not brought meaning, purpose, fulfillment, or lasting joy into my life. In fact, not only were my possessions not bringing me joy, they were actually distracting me from the very things that did bring happiness, purpose, and fulfillment into my life.

We immediately began pursuing a more minimalist lifestyle by removing the unnecessary possessions from our home and lives.

We started easy. We donated unworn clothes, unloved decorations, and unused kitchen gadgets. We eventually moved through our home room-by-room, closet-by-closet, and drawer-by-drawer. Nothing was left untouched. If it was in our home, it was evaluated.

Our mantra became, “Intentionally promote the things we most value and remove anything that is distracting us from it.”

Upon visiting that website, I found these words from Joshua:

...tell us on Facebook and Twitter how you intend to overcome consumerism and reclaim Thanksgiving this Thursday. Tell us about your holiday traditions or plans. Or simply express your gratitude by sharing with the world what you are thankful for this year.

With each tweet or status update, include the hashtag: #ReclaimThanksgiving.

It is an interesting topic, this whole matter of excess.  And, I have some thoughts for you on this Thanksgiving Eve.  First of all, no matter whether your excess has been gotten by greed or is the result of a seemingly benign accumulation of stuff, God can use what you have that you may not need in order to bless people in need.

And, our giving is a product, I believe, of thanksgiving.  If we are thankful to God for His blessings, material or intangible, out of a thankful heart, that can produce a desire to serve. Because we love Him, we want to serve and honor Him, and we can do that by honoring our fellow humans.

Finally, our generosity can produce thanksgiving to God.  2nd Corinthians 9 teaches that well - as we give - and let people know that we are doing what we do in the name of the Lord - we can trust the Holy Spirit to touch hearts and they can sense the love of Christ flowing through us.   Thanksgiving - yes, it's giving thanks to our Lord, but it's a time to give and lead others in giving thanks to Him, too.