The First Thanksgiving: a Celebration of Gratitude not Gluttony

When I woke up Sunday morning, a girlfriend texted in sheer gratefulness to God for having been able to see her kids the day before. It struck me how her gratitude was borne out of a terrible struggle and time of sorrow.

You see, in recent months her three kids had been taken from her after an alcoholic husband lied to police, DSS and school systems failed, and attorneys gouged her for thousands of dollars and did nothing. Everything and everyone in her world had come crashing down, spinning out of control, even though she hadn’t done anything wrong.

But all she can talk about is how wonderful it is to see her kids again. She is filled with tears and joy. Her praise despite the troubles is a sweet sacrifice to God. And He isn’t finished yet.

Similarly, when the Pilgrims landed and stepped foot into snow and ice on that first November, they faced many hardships. No stores, no hospitals, no shelters. Half of the crew and family members did not survive. Only 52 of them were left to “begin a new life” after battling the bitter cold, scurvy, pneumonia, and TB. A mere 30 adults and 22 kids made it that first year. 

So they worked and struggled and planted and built until they began to see some harvest. That first Thanksgiving was not a time of gluttony but a celebration of true gratitude. Though many loved ones gave their lives in the effort to establish a free society, they stopped to establish a day to show thankfulness.

We need to stop rushing through life without acknowledging that everything we have is an undeserved gift. Life is not our own. When we came into this world and when we leave it is not our choice, not under our control. Life is a gift.

Watching the people who gave testimonies about the Paris attacks, they were filled with gratitude. Not a sense of entitlement, nor vindictive. They all expressed gratitude for having come through a terrible time. We know it’s true. Our trials and the things that stretch us are the very things that teach us patience, compassion for others, and genuine gratitude for what we have. 

Because of that fact, we can thank God despite trials and losses. I’m talking about an attitude of gratitude and how it changes us. As Meade wrote, “I never met a grateful person that was unhappy.”

This note was found taped to my son's office door. I told him it looks exactly like something he would have written when he was a child. Even the handwriting is similar! It's never a bad time to find a note of gratitude, is it. We welcome a word of thanks as a sweet fragrance. And so does God.

Dear God, thank you for all that we have. For our family who are with us today, and for the ones we have loved who are no longer with us. Thank you for your mercy to us all. Teach us to appreciate all your gifts, and bring us closer to your heart of compassion for others rather than the temporary things of this world. 

Amen.

Part II. Of Tendons and Ligaments: LEFT WRIST

Another little issue that appeared this year was my left wrist.

It probably stems from a fall on my bike when my front wheel went down into a little ditch of pine needles and then stopped short at the pavement. The handlebars quickly twisted and I went straight down, scraping my shin on the pedal and tangling my legs into the frame.

As I brushed off and straightened up slowly, I did a quick mental appraisal of the damages, relieved to discover nothing broken, able to bandage up my shin and get back on the bike! 

It was only the next day or two that I became aware of a little aggravated place on my wrist as I was lifting laundry baskets or grocery bags.

I mentioned it at my physical in June and the doc thought it was the tendon, so I started babying it, wearing wristbands, asking prison guards to carry Bibles for me, and sleeping with it elevated.

Over a period of a couple months it seems to have improved a little, but the occasional stabbing pain keeps me wondering what’s going on in there? 

It could be when my hairbrush catches and jerks my hand back a little too quickly. Or, when I’m rushing around to get out the door in the morning and grab the keys and purse in one hand, a water bottle and book bag in the other without thinking. Ouch!

Then there are the times when I’m rolling over in bed and reach out to pull the covers up, or readjust a pillow, forgetting. Eeeek! 

Shouldn’t that be healed by now, Lord? 

Well, here it is a few weeks before Thanksgiving and I finally had my first appointment with a hand specialist at U Mass Medical Center. They took x-rays and even I could tell they looked perfect. Now I have to come back for an ultrasound.

There are plenty of things going on in us that even an x-ray can’t detect.

So, what is it about this that I need to learn, Father? 

Inner healing takes the most time. Knitting bones, rebuilding tendons like the Planters Fasciitis in my foot, are not real fast. I am still walking with a limp at times, especially after housecleaning or carrying grandbabies up a few flights of stairs. I need patience. 

Anyone looking at me as I sip a caramel macchiato in Barnes and Noble right now might not suspect there's anything wrong but God knows, the strain of climbing that mountain in New Hampshire and falling from my bike left their marks in me.

How many wounds and scars do we carry? We all have them. That 3” line on my knee from stitches as a kid, a little “u” on my right index finger where I cut myself skinning a pig leg…  

Every mark brings up a story. A piece of history. What are you carrying? What grabs at you that may still need some attention or forgiveness?

Thank you Father for your good work in me. I trust you for total healing as I continue the journey with you.

Of Tendons and Ligaments: God Directs Every Step!

It is a marvel to realize how God directs and guides our every step! 

I so ENJOY walking with GOD and the zillion ways he shows up with a flurry of glimpses that I'm always trying to gather up like manna from heaven into my heart’s basket to save and savor and write about. To those who love God there is a continual feast. 

Sadly, there are so many ways we miss him and his whispers of love as we skip through our days. We just plain forget... the other day I noticed this again in the shelter. God healed a man for specific requests not once but TWICE of major concerns in the last two weeks and he forgot about it until I came in the next week and asked!

Me: “What about that lump in your chest that the doctors couldn’t resolve?”
He had been so worried and the pains were shooting through to his back, but he kinda shook his head and said, “Oh, that’s all gone!”

Me: “And how about your leg now?” (We had prayed for a bum knee.)

Him:  “Oh! I played basketball for two hours yesterday!”

I stared at him. “You mean, God’s healed you, twice? Wow!”

He was a little taken back. “Yeah, I guess so.”

“God loves you doesn’t He?”

Of course, as soon as that became clear, they all came running and lined up for more prayer. One young man, a new believer said, “I want prayer for all of me! For total spiritual healing!” Isn’t that beautiful? Faith generates more faith.

God is in the business of healing. But of course, it’s totally HIS business. I have a growing faith but know God wants to meet US, not just DO what we want him to.

I've had a little issue too. It seemingly began with a mountain climb in New Hampshire in June. The very next day I noticed a pain on the heal of my left foot. I figured I must have stepped on a pointy stone or bruised it somehow. Off and on for a few months it would be unnoticeable for brief periods, reappearing after heavy lifting or maybe wearing the wrong shoes... ?

I was accustomed to self-diagnoses since we worked remotely in New Guinea, and I kept telling myself, if this isn't better by next week, I'm gonna have it looked at. It never seemed to be serious enough to stop everything and go to the ER. Be patient, I’d tell myself. If tendon or bone related, it just needs time to heal.

Yesterday, I felt it was about time for some answers. I sat at the kitchen table and talked to God. "Lord, you could say the word and heal these issues but there must be a reason for lingering and something you want to do, someone you want to touch. Show me where."

I imagined sitting in the ER all day... Been there, done that as they say! Like the time the doctor wanted to check my heart a few years ago. I was reading Girl Meets God by Lauren Winner at the time, and patients, doctors and nurses thought I was preparing to meet the Almighty! 

It was a divine opportunity to share faith with people for an entire weekend, but it all turned out to be what I call the $2000 burp! My heart was fine, but it was a very costly barrage of tests. 

I headed out with a great book I've been reading, Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus... and headed to the nearest walk-in clinic. 

Unfortunately, a little sign by the door said, “Dr. on lunch. Next appt 1:40.” I sat down and pulled out my cellphone to search for something else when the door creaked opened and the doc asked what I needed. Then she smiled and said, "Go to 50 Worcester Rd in Framingham." ... Just the sort of direction I need!

Arriving at the much larger clinic I was surprised to see an empty waiting room, and soon connected with the doctor on duty, a Harvard man no less. To my amazement, he JUST HAPPENS to have been doing industry changing research on exactly the condition I have for the past FIFTEEN YEARS!

He's Jewish and I told him he was an answer to my prayers! We had a wonderful visit and he loved hearing stories about running a clinic with cannibals. Between severed fingers and fish hooks and tree impaled patients, you should have seen his eyes when I mentioned that we only had 6 weeks of medical training and a Merck manual! 

Point is, God led me perfectly to an expert who made an immediate difference in my foot. I estimated a 50% improvement, and I barely even noticed it today! Thank you, God! You are the divine Physician! 

Then last night I attended a Ravi Zacharias ministry event and the speaker referred to the root word for spirituality which actually means to RE-ligament! I'd never even thought about that before. 

When we connect to God it is like attaching the bones in our physical body. True spirituality, connecting to our Creator, strengthens us and holds our lives together, just as reattaching ligaments holds our bones in place.

Thank you Father! You are holding my hand!

You are holding me together!

Glimpses of Glory: Baby Steps

I went to women’s Bible study for the first time in months and it felt like a wonderful little fall reunion. Many faces I hadn't seen in about a year.  

The lesson was on worry and I knew right away, this is God’s plan for me to refocus my heart on this essential foundation. I’ve been letting it slip! 

Like a kite twisting in the winds, sometimes pointed up and rising, and suddenly taking dips and nose-diving toward the ground, my faith and fears do constant battle. 

It’s back to the famous Sermon on the Mount. Nothing new. In fact, I’d been visiting some of the very same verses in recent days.  Don’t worry. Look at the birds and flowers of the field. Aren’t you worth more than these?

I listened pensively as several women shared. Some said it gets easier with age, but I sat there grappling with my own apparent inability to stay in the zone of trust! How come I know these things so well and forget them so easily? 

With various physical pains stabbing at my shoulder, heal and wrist lately, and concerns about security after losing a job five months ago, I’m not seeing a good foundation for building my dreams here.

I confessed to everyone that I’m grappling with trust even after all these years. I miss my husband’s words of assurance and his shoulder to lean on. I feel alone in the ministry God's called me to and the weight is on my shoulders at times. I keep forgetting that the Lord carries the yoke, but I keep taking it back. 

Oh yes, I give it to God and even rebuke the devil. I’ve been moving forward with every opportunity before me. But the point is, it doesn’t come easy. Maybe two steps forward, one or two back. 

It feels like I’m back to baby steps in my spiritual life, walking through new challenges and asking God to hold me up. 

Lord God, help me stay in the zone and take this one day at a time. No matter what it feels like, no matter how painful, no matter how ridiculous it looks, I intend to keep going until I see you face to face! No matter what!

Tears were in my eyes when we closed in prayer, and I asked God simply to hold me up and help me remember it's one step at a time. How can he love me? How does he put up with me?

My face was in my hands, tears were in my eyes, when I became aware that one of the women’s toddlers had tiptoed over to me. He stood right under my face and peered up and said, “Hello!” 

I opened my eyes.  Such a perfect and innocent little face! Blonde curls and and big blue eyes were peering up at me sweetly. Chubby bare feet reminded me of my own tiny clumsy adorable feet and the baby steps I’m taking. 

“Hello sweetheart!” He touched my heart so, I just wanted to scoop him up! He was absolutely angelic! I saw no fault in him whatsoever. 

Oh dear God! It doesn’t matter that we take such faltering steps. You know exactly what I’m made of and yet, you love me still! You are moved at the sound of my little voice. 

Thank you for loving me, Father!

I need to recognize hardship as part of God’s plan. Show me one baby step at a time, Lord. Even if it’s not what I expect!

I will be content to know that you love me, you know my needs, and you won’t fail. 

You have all my tomorrows figured out.

My times are in His Hands

Looking back over my life there have been a lot of ups 
and downs…

Times I devalued life, wasted time…  5 years of experimenting with drugs, smoking pot at high school, partying, and taking foolish risks. When I cried out to God, He met me on the tundra of Alaska and said, “I am.”

Times I felt alienated…  landing in the jungle for the first time in March, pregnant and with 2 toddlers, I thought I would melt into the ground when the heat hit my northern winter white skin. God showed me that I can slay dragons.

Times I questioned life, my purpose or my competence…  Lord! I’ll never learn this language and I don’t even love these people!  He showed me a fig tree and spoke about doing the impossible.

A Time I prayed to die…  didn’t know if I would ever walk again, I was loaded onto the metal floor of a small plane and bounced through a tropical storm in excruciating pain with a newborn at my side that I couldn’t nurse. The beginning of wisdom is the fear of God.

And a Time I prayed to live…  opening my eyes to the long blade of a bush knife and the black grimacing face and red teeth of a crazy man over me. I learned about surrender to the Almighty.  

Times I felt discouraged and thought about quitting. God raised a woman from the dead and sent her back to the tribe with a message to listen to his servants! I learned that God knows what he’s doing in our lives.

Times I feared what lie ahead of me…  I told the hospice nurse, when I come down here and find myself the only one left I’m going to hit the deck… but God showed up in my burning bush!

A Time I felt condemned…  and He painted a Michelangelo in the sky! 

A Time I determined to hear God or die trying… and I only missed lunch before He lovingly revealed his plan.

Times I felt alone…  and He gave me flowers and said, “I’m still here Karen.”

A Time I felt handicapped and didn’t know how to go on…  and He lifted my head again and talked to me about heaven, “You’re halfway home! You’re in the spring-step to heaven.”

In ALL my times the LORD my GOD has proven faithful to me! 

He is Elohim, the strong and faithful One who parts the waters and leads us through the Red Sea!

This list describes incidents from my life story documented in the memoir, Crickets and Thunder.