Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Recovering Thankfulness by shattering the lens of "me"

In America, the Thanksgiving season has arrived with all the splendor (and chill) of autumn. And while we ponder pumpkin pie and smoked turkey, it's a good season to think a little about what thankfulness really is.

"Thank you!" If you were raised to be polite, you probably say that a lot. When you make a purchase at the store, you say, "Thank you. Bye," as you leave. But is that really thankfulness?  Do you sincerely feel that sense of appreciation that comes from thankfulness. Probably not. Why? Because, you paid for the item. You simply got what you deserved.

BUT if you went to pay for an item and clerk said, "I tell you what, I am going to pay for that, myself. You can have it for free," your attitude would be different. Some of us would try not to accept it. "No. no, you can't do that. I must pay for my things."  Others might take a step back dumbfounded.  But at the end of the transaction, most of us would say, "Wow, thank you."  Same words. Totally different sentiment, a sentiment of true thankfulness.

I fear we have largely lost the sentiment of true thankfulness in our modern lives. We have more stuff and likely live in nicer houses than our parents' generation, certainly more than our grandparents'. We have all the gadgets of our technological age. We have dishwashers, clothes washers, even clothes driers! We live in an age of jet airplanes and regular vacations.  We have more to be thankful for and yet, ironically, we've largely lost the sentiment of thankfulness.

Baby boomers became known as the "me" generation, bent on "self-realization and self fulfillment."  Now the millennials are becoming known as the "me, me, me," generation, marked by overconfidence, sense of entitlement and laziness. The me culture has become our norm and it has even impacted our Christianity.

Perhaps here is where we find our fundamental flaw.  We only see the world through the lens of ME.  Psychologists of our times speak of  people suffering from everything from inferiority complexes to superiority complexes, or vacillating between the two. Yet all the complexes place the "me" at the center of the universe.

And when we can only see the world with the "me" at the center, we are incapable of comprehending the truth of who we are and who God is.  Until we "get" this, it's hard to truly be thankful.

I was recently reminded of one of my favorite stories of the Bible. Matt. 15:26 tells of a gentile woman who came to Jesus in utter desperation because her child was tormented by a demon. For many it is a troubling story because of what Jesus says to her: "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs."(v.26).

Stinging words! But surprisingly, this woman was not offended at all. Why? Because she knew it was true. The woman understood exactly what He was saying. Jesus was calling things as they are. She had no right to ask anything of Jesus. She was not even a Jew, for heaven's sake!

She could demand nothing. She knew she was like a dog, the pet that lies beneath the table. She accepted that, because she was not looking at the world through the lens of "me".  As a result, she could see things as they were. She understood exactly who she was and who He was.  Because of this understanding, she made an appeal. "Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their masters' table," she said. (v27).

It was a remarkable moment. It brings tears to my eyes, as it must of done for Christ himself as he answers with great emotion, "O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish."(v. 28).

So while God's own chosen people were rejecting him, the Jewish leaders were fighting with him and his own disciples were so often missing the point, this pagan woman really understood who God was and who she was. And on that basis, she made her appeal, an appeal for mercy, for grace. And when she received that which she asked for, we can be sure her heart brimmed with true thanksgiving.

As we enter this thanksgiving season, let's take the time to step back from all our luxuries, remove the lens of "me" and just see God for who He is.  When we let Him truly be the center of our universe, we can begin to understand who we are in the face of His reality.  And then, perhaps, we can recover a true spirit of Thanksgiving.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thank you Trudy for this great reminder. I needed to hear that. Love
to you and kids. And Russell of coursr. HAPPY THANKSGIVING.

Anonymous said...

I want to discover thankfulness daily. This is a good reminder.