The Lutheran Hour
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"Don’t Say, ‘In A Minute’"
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Text: Deuteronomy 8:10-14
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Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed. Although there are many earthly blessings for which humanity should daily give thanks, there is none more precious to a Christian than the faith and knowledge that the Son of God has saved him. Although all things temporal pass away, salvation, through faith, is God’s great gift–His lasting gift. For Jesus, along with everything else God has done, we give thanks.
Years ago, during the days of propeller planes, an airline pilot had a peculiar habit. Whenever he took off from his hometown in Minneapolis, he asked the copilot to take the controls. For a few moments, he would stare down at the ground below. Eventually, and understandably, the copilot’s curiosity got the best of him. He asked, “What are you looking at down there?” The pilot replied, “See that spot where the river curves to the left? I used to fish from that spot when I was a kid. Whenever a plane flew over, I would watch it until it disappeared and wished that I could be in that plane. Now,” he added, “I wish I could be back down there fishing.” That’s the world. For the world, there is no contentment, no thanksgiving. But for Christians, it’s different. Because of Jesus, whether they’re flying or fishing, they can remember to give thanks.
It’s not normal to be content or give thanks. We forget. A number of years ago, a robber broke into a home in Cleveland, Ohio. He discovered the 81-year-old-woman who lived there was his grade school teacher. “You were always good to me,” the thief said as he tenderly kissed his teacher upon her cheek. Then he and a friend stole $210 from her. For the world there is no contentment, there is no thanksgiving.
Mrs. Sarah Hale knew it isn’t normal to give thanks. Sarah Hale? Oh, you know Sarah Hale. She is the lady who wrote, “Mary had a little lamb. Its fleece was white as snow. And everywhere that Mary went….” Well, you know the rest. Sarah Hale, author of “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” was also the lady in 1828, who began a campaign to restore Thanksgiving as a national holiday. I use the word “restore,” because America had Thanksgiving celebrations before. Three years after the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth, Governor Bradford of Massachusetts announced: “I, your magistrate, do proclaim that all ye pilgrims gather at ye meeting house on ye hill between the hours of 9 and 12, to listen to ye pastor and render thanksgiving to ye Almighty God for all His blessings.” The pilgrims had survived diseases, harvested crops, shot game and now they gave thanks. But it’s not normal to give thanks, and soon, Thanksgiving faded away.
After the Revolution, as our country was getting started and settled, Washington proclaimed, “All (should) unite in rendering unto Him (God) our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country.” Great idea, but it was only a few years before Thomas Jefferson, our 3rd president, discontinued Thanksgiving day, calling the celebration, “a kingly practice.”
Then came Mrs. Hale. She felt our country should be thankful for what the Lord had given it. She went to one official after another; “too naïve,” “impractical,” “impossible.” Those were the replies she got until she met President Lincoln. He liked her idea and set aside the 4th Thursday of November to be “National Thanksgiving Day.” But Congress didn’t approve it. It took almost fourscore years, until 1941, when our country was again involved in another war, a World War, for Congress to set aside a day of Thanksgiving.
Those are the facts. They say it clearly. For the world, there is no contentment, no thanksgiving. We forget. That’s partly because most folks think they don’t have much for which to give thanks. Taxes are tough; traffic is treacherous; terrorists are threatening; tomorrow seems troublesome. The washing machine is making demonic sounds and the car is internally hemorrhaging. Then, in November, Thanksgiving Day arrives. You know the drive to grandma’s will make the make the children tired and crabby; the church service will probably run too long; the pastor’s message will be about Thanksgiving, just like it was last year when you went to church. At dinner, you hate it when your cranberries melt into your mashed potatoes, and the idea of giblet dressing makes you squirm. Of course, the bird, which everyone proclaims as the best ever, is a tad dry. In the afternoon, during a football half time, you draw the names of relatives out of a hat so you know whom to buy presents for at Christmas. You pick the name. “No, not them again!” You didn’t know what to get them last year. You’re tired of telling the children, “It’s Thanksgiving Day, not Turkey Day.” But, in your more honest moments, you agree with them. That’s the world. For the world, there is no contentment, no thanksgiving.
When Pam and I moved to St. Louis, even before all of our boxes were unpacked, we set up two bird feeders. We were fascinated by the variety of birds that flocked in. There were nuthatches, doves, finches, cardinals, bluejays, woodpeckers and some I still haven’t identified. They varied in appetite, size, pecking order and color. Yet, in spite of their differences, those birds had two things in common: They all took the food we were providing for granted, and, whenever anyone came out of our house, they all flew away in fear. We weren’t going to hurt them. We didn’t want to bother them. But the birds couldn’t understand that.
From what I’ve seen, it is not much different for people. Most humans act as if the clothes they wear, the food they eat, the life they lead, are all things that just magically happen. Humans delude themselves into thinking they are the creators of their own destinies–the providers of life’s bounties. If God, the real Provider, gets close, they fly for cover. That’s the world. For the world, there is no contentment; there is no thanksgiving.
But for Christians, it’s different. Because of Jesus, whether they’re flying or fishing, they remember to give thanks. Christians have someone to whom they can give thanks. Christians know they have a God who has given them clothing and shoes, meat and drink, house and home, everything they need to support this body and life.
Now at this point in the sermon, I’m supposed to tell you all Christians are thankful. I won’t say that. You’d know I wasn’t telling the truth. You know a lot of Christians who are no more thankful and no happier than the average “Joe” or “Jane.” That’s because all too many pastors are saying, and all too many Christians believe, that when you become a follower of Jesus, He is instantly going to make you prettier, happier, thinner, wealthier, bigger, more successful, more popular, healthier, stronger, and more influential. There are a lot of pastors saying, and a lot of people believe, that when you become a Christian, you will automatically become immune from sadness and sickness, depression and discouragement, headache, heartbreak and hurt. Christianity doesn’t work that way. (The Lord) “causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” (Matthew. 5:45).
Our Savior said, “If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his Cross and follow Me” (Matthew 16:24). God’s Word never says Christians won’t have worries. But we are told that when worries arrive, we can “Cast all our anxieties on Him because He cares for us.” Jesus didn’t say that everyone would love His followers, applaud, and appreciate them. On the contrary, He said, “His people would be blessed because they were, for His sake, insulted, persecuted and slandered” (Matthew 5:11).
For Christians, thankfulness does not come because they have it made in the shade. They know that they, like everyone else in this world, are sinners (Ecclesiastes 7:20). They know there is no religious immunization that will make you impervious to agony and anguish. They know thankfulness, true thankfulness, untarnishing thankfulness cannot be based on the temporary, the transient, the transitory, the worldly. They know true thankfulness can only come from an unchanging, always caring God.
Look at the Old Testament story of Noah. Here’s a man who doesn’t have many reasons to be thankful. All he once knew was gone. Cities gone. Farms gone. Shopping malls gone. Vegetation, wildlife and relatives, mostly gone. The whole world is before him, but it is a hurting world, empty and cold, filled with loneliness. Confronted by this bleak and barren place, Noah leaves the ark and takes some of his precious animals and makes a sacrifice of thanks to God. He sees God’s rainbow covenant and knows he is not alone, has never been alone, cannot be alone. Noah, in the face of a loss that most of us cannot imagine, remains thankful (Genesis 5-9).
Look at the apostle Paul. He had been shipwrecked and stoned, unjustly accused and hounded from city to city. He had been mobbed, beaten, jailed and tormented (2 Corinthians 11:24-26). The day would come when he would die for the Savior. Considering all of these things, Paul could write: “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21). Indeed, because he had seen what Jesus had done for him upon the accursed cross, he “learned to be content in whatever circumstance he found himself.” In times of need and in times of plenty, he learned to be content. Whether he was fed or hungry, living in plenty or in want, he learned to be content. All this he could do because the Lord God gave him strength (Philippians 4:11-14).
Paul knew that, because of Jesus, whether you’re flying or fishing, you can remember to give thanks. Without God, a person whose cancer is in remission can say, “I am so happy.” Good, I’m glad they are happy. But the day will come when the cancer will not go into remission. On that day, what will such a person do? In contrast, a Christian can calmly say, “It is all right. I am not alone. I am at peace. I am going home to a better place, to be with my Savior, Jesus.” That is a heart that offers true thanksgiving. A heart that knows, because Jesus is there, life has no pitfall, no tragedy, which cannot be conquered by the Savior.
Listeners, and now I especially talk to those who don’t know Jesus, let me ask: “Will Thanksgiving Day, 2002, begin and end with an emptiness that no amount of Thanksgiving feasting can fill? Will this Thanksgiving Day be just another day with no one to thank or applaud? Will this Thanksgiving Day see you surrounded by family and friends who cannot break through a shell of sin-created loneliness that surrounds you? Will this Thanksgiving Day be checked off your calendar as just another day without love? To you I say if you are alone, if you feel guilty, if you have been treated unfairly, there is a Savior who can help. Jesus, God’s Son, who gave Himself so you might have life and have it abundantly (John 10:10) is ready to change things. Lutheran Hour Ministries wants to help you meet “Him, the giver of every good and perfect gift” (James 1:17). Call the number we will give before this broadcast concludes. Meet Jesus, the love of God, who wishes to give you, whether flying or fishing, a life of thanksgiving.
It was right before Thanksgiving when the home economics department of the University of Minnesota received a phone call. A lady wanted to know if a turkey was safe to eat. Her mother had moved to a nursing home and now the daughter was cleaning out the mom’s freezer. There, at the bottom, she discovered a turkey that, according to the date on the tag, been in the freezer for 23 years. “Is it safe to eat? she asked.” The home economist drew a deep breath and as kindly as she could said, “No, I don’t think you should eat it. In fact, it could make you pretty sick.” “I thought so,” came the reply. “I’ll just give it to the food bank for Thanksgiving.”
Giving leftovers to the poor–it’s a terrible thought, isn’t it? It’s almost as bad as giving God your leftovers. That’s why I say to those of you who know Jesus, who know God’s Son was given to save you from your sins, give God your best. This Thanksgiving Day, give God your best thanks, for He has given you eternity. This Thanksgiving, give God your best thanks for all He does for you daily. This Thanksgiving, give God your best thanks for all you have and all you don’t have. Yes, even for what you don’t have. Rejoice in the accidents in which you were not involved; the illnesses that never came and the times you could have fallen, but didn’t. Be thankful the house didn’t burn down when you left the coffee pot on for five hours. Be thankful when you left the garage door open all night, nothing was stolen. In Jesus, be thankful when the phone rang in the middle of the night, it was a wrong number and not someone calling to tell you about a death in the family. This Thanksgiving Day, give your best to Him, who gave His best to you. This Thanksgiving Day, whether flying or fishing, give thanks for Jesus your Savior and Lord. Amen.
LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers) for November 24, 2002 (Thanksgiving)
ANNOUNCER: We’re again talking about Christian prayer with Pastor Ken Klaus. I’m Mark Eischer. Pastor Klaus, some years ago Garth Brooks had a song that said, “Sometimes I thank God for unanswered prayers.” Is there really such a thing as unanswered prayer?
KLAUS: Well, if you were praying to a false god, that prayer would certainly be unanswered. That’s like making a phone call to a telephone number that doesn’t exist. Other prayers can be unanswered, too.
ANNOUNCER: Like when?
KLAUS: Well, the Lord isn’t committed to answering any prayer where the person making the prayer acts like he is in control. As fathers, we wouldn’t look favorably upon our children if they came in, made a demand, stamped their feet, held their breath, and threatened us. God doesn’t like that from His children, either. Of course, if you really don’t come to the Lord with faith, that’s not guaranteed, either.
ANNOUNCER: That answer leads me to another question. I’ve heard it said God answers prayers with either “yes,” “no,” or “wait.” How do those possible answers relate to God’s overall purposes?
KLAUS: I’ve heard that, too. But, you know Mark, I prefer to think God answers prayers, “yes,” “wait,” or “I’ll give you something better.” That’s what I see in Scripture.
ANNOUNCER: Could you elaborate?
KLAUS: Surely. Three times Paul asked that his thorn in the flesh, whatever that might have been, be taken away from him. The Lord didn’t say yes. He didn’t say no. He didn’t say wait. He said, “I’ll give you something better.” And He did. He made His strength visible through Paul’s weakness. When Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane, He asked His Father, if it was His will, to take away the cup of suffering He was going to drink. The Lord didn’t take away the cup. He didn’t make Jesus wait for an answer. He didn’t say no. He gave Him something better. He gave Him the strength necessary to suffer, die, and rise for us. For us, that was the best thing of all. I’ve seen that same kind of thing happen again and again in people’s lives. They want one thing, but God gives them something better.
ANNOUNCER: Do they always see it as something better?
KLAUS: No, they don’t. The Christmas Kurt didn’t get his shotgun, I doubt he thought the substitute present was something better. It was–for him, for his sisters and parents, and for the entire neighborhood.
ANNOUNCER: So how can we learn to see God is indeed giving us something better?
KLAUS: That comes through faith. When we believe our Father has only our best interests at heart, and will never ever do that which is wrong for us, we can pray, “Thy will be done,” and really mean it.
ANNOUNCER: Now God knows everything, including what we need and what is in our heart. So why pray? What is God trying to accomplish through our prayers?
KLAUS: First, He is showing us He is the Father and we are the children. Second, He is showing us just how much He trusts us to come to Him. And, of course, He is trying to help us grow in faith toward Him. Remember what Jesus said, “And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive” (Matthew 21:22). That word “believing” is key.
ANNOUNCER: Does that mean if we don’t get what we ask for it’s because we don’t believe?
KLAUS: No, not at all. That’s what some of the faith healers say: “You weren’t healed. Your friend died. You’re not rich, because you didn’t believe.” Remember, God is the Father. He is in control. He will ultimately give us what we ask for or something better.
ANNOUNCER: Do you suppose, pastor, God makes any distinctions between prayers we offer up for temporal blessings as opposed to spiritual blessings?
KLAUS: There is a distinction. When it comes to spiritual blessings, like a stronger faith, or for someone to meet Jesus, I know what God’s will is. He has told me that in the Bible. So, I can simply ask for those things. I am in agreement with God’s will. But when it comes to praying for Elvis to stop by and give me a gold Cadillac, or to get a promotion, I don’t know if that is good for me or not. That’s when, like a child, I have to say, “not my will, but Your will be done.” I let God make the ultimate decision.
ANNOUNCER: Why would God do all of this for us? Why would He listen to our prayers?
KLAUS: He listens to our prayers because that’s what a Father does. He wants us to know He’s there. He wants us to know He cares. He wants us to know that no matter in what circumstance we find ourselves, He will be there. Because Jesus was born for us, lived, died and rose for us, took our place, God the Father is there listening and loving and ready to hear our praises.
ANNOUNCER: Thank you, Pastor Klaus. With that, we come to the end of our broadcast for another week.