Thanksgiving

I'm always struck by the dichotomy of a day like Thanksgiving....when I'm rejoicing for all I've been blessed with and yet fully aware of the anguish that is all around.

In the midst of pain and heartache...

Lament. It is okay to allow yourself that moment to ache. To sit in the hurt for the world, your community, your family, your home. It doesn't help to just pretend everything is 'just peachy'....there are a lot of hard and difficult things around us. Acknowledge it.

Let go. For God is at work and morning will come. It's not just a cliche' I'm tossing out in a Pollyanna way. It is true and I have experienced it over and over again. And when you doubt this to be true....gather prayer warriors around you to carry you through until you remember.

Laugh. Do not dismiss the incredible power that laughter has. There is great healing and joy in a big ol belly laugh.

Love. Look around you and see people. This day might be hard....for so many of b us it can be because we are missing loved ones...they might be in heaven, ill, living far awymay, incarcerated, maybe there are severed relationships or irreconcilable differences....but in the middle of that muck? There is love. I promise you. Even if it's just the love you have for yourself.

Whether your table is full today....or missing many...I pray you find a moment to lament, let go, laugh and love. You are alive. You matter.

That's what I got today.