Live Thanks!

Last Sunday we learned to not just Give thanks but also to Live thanks. I shared a powerful insight from Gerald Mann’s book, When the Bad Times are Over for Good: “In every tragedy you can look at what you have lost and be Hateful, or you can look at what you have left and be Grateful.” Too many make the wrong decision, please make the right one. Enjoy this beautiful true story I found at guideposts.org.

A Thanksgiving Turkey on Every Table

We’d given our turkey to a family that was even more needy. But who would help us?

By Mary Jarvis, Pawhuska, Oklahoma

I lifted the heavy lid of our old freezer in the garage and peered inside, looking for some vegetables to make for dinner. For the past year, we’d scraped by on my small teacher’s salary while my husband, Mike, was away at graduate school. With three hungry teenagers to feed, it was a challenge to stretch our grocery dollars. Now, one glance at the half-empty freezer made me question what I’d done on impulse a week earlier.

The Tuesday before Thanksgiving, Kathy, my 14-year-old, blurted out that one of her friends wasn’t celebrating the holiday because her mother couldn’t afford it. “We could give them our turkey, Mom,” she said. “We don’t need it since we’re going to Uncle Pat’s.” How could I explain to her that I was saving our turkey for Christmas? We didn’t have enough money for Mike to come home for Thanksgiving. The kids and I were going to my brother-in-law’s so I wouldn’t have to invest in a big dinner. How could I afford another turkey before Christmas?

We taught our kids to help others. But to help someone else when we could barely help ourselves? Still, I knew I couldn’t say no. Lord, I hope you have a plan because I sure don’t.

We gathered up a bag of potatoes and cranberry sauce I had in the pantry. I sent my son, Matt, out to the freezer in the garage to get some vegetables—and the turkey. When we brought Kathy’s friend the food, her mother cried tears of joy. At the time, their happiness made me feel better about giving away our turkey. But now, looking into our freezer, I wondered, Who’s going to help us?

I rummaged through the frozen containers—broccoli, carrots, some blackberries from our garden. I pushed aside some frosted bags of green beans and corn. Wait…something was there. Suddenly I stopped and stared. Nestled among the vegetables was a newly bought turkey.

I never found out who the mysterious donor was. Does it matter? Whoever it was knew exactly what we needed, when we needed it.

May our hearts overflow each and every day with Joy and Thanksgiving and Praise to the Lord!

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The John Mark Allen family, AG missionaries to Micronesia (including Pohnpei and the Marshall Islands), will be with us this Sunday, November 30, in both the 9:30am Adult Bible Class and the 10:35am Worship service. Please invite someone to join you in the building or online for the Live broadcast on either Facebook (Honolulu AG) or our YouTube channel (Honolulu Assembly of God). We Livestream every Sunday to both locations and would love to have you join us!

Immediately after the service that day, we will “Deck the Halls” by decorating the building for Christmas and then together enjoy a delicious lunch together. (Lunch is provided, so you don’t need to bring anything that day.)

Our 14^th annual Christmas Lunch and Treasure Trade for women and children is Saturday, December 6, at 11:30am. Tickets are available at Sunday services or by calling the church office. (Tickets are free and help us know how many to welcome.) Our December Drive-Through Prayer outreach in the parking lot happens that same day from 11am-1pm.

Aloha ke Akua!