(Elizabeth W. and Sherry D. are the winners of our November giveaway Sacred Refuge by Lynne Rienstra. Congratulations!)
It could not have been a coincidence.
Mike walked into the house several weeks ago carrying an envelope just as I finished reading a text message from friends in Asheville. They had started a private fund for their neighbors whose farm had flooded during Hurricane Helene, with livestock and equipment lost, while the husband had been doing swift water rescues for area residents in danger of drowning.
“Mike, we need to help,” I said.
“How much are you thinking?” he asked. “The couple who sheltered here after the hurricane just gave me a check. I didn’t want to take it, but they knew we lost all our Airbnb guests in October and they insisted, saying it was their way of expressing thanks.”
When I named the amount I hoped we could contribute, he looked at me in amazement. “That’s what we were just given!”
We had received exactly what we needed to help someone else. God didn’t disguise his entrance into that situation – his fingerprints were all over it. How grateful we were!
It’s Thanksgiving Week, and reminders are everywhere of the importance of expressing gratitude. It’s good for lowering our blood pressure and releasing negative emotions. It’s also credited with reducing pain and even improving the quality of our sleep.
But what if gratitude has another hidden benefit as well? Rather than simply being thankful for what we have, what if we leverage the power of what we don’t have to bless others?
Helene was not an equal opportunity hurricane. She certainly didn’t play fair. Some homes on our street have been condemned; others, like ours, were not damaged. Around town, some businesses were destroyed, others left untouched. But here's the good news: those of us who did not lose our homes or livelihoods can help those who did – the “have nots” helping the “haves.”
Most of you aren’t living in the aftermath of a hurricane, but for some 2024 has been truly terrible. The late Queen Elizabeth famously remarked that for the royal family, 1992 was an annus horribilis – a horrible year. “1992 is not a year on which I shall look back with undiluted pleasure," she said. “I suspect that I am not alone in thinking it so.”
How do we focus on gratitude in times like these? Perhaps by thinking of ourselves as the “have nots” rather than the haves.
There are those who will be missing a member of the family around their table this year.
They have deep sorrow in their souls. If you have not experienced recent loss, you can reach out to the newly bereaved, whether it’s death or divorce or family estrangement that’s carved out their canyon of grief. Invite them to join you to share memories of happier times.
There are those who have lost a job or are still looking for the right one after years of searching.
If you are not in this position but are blessed with a steady income, you can reach out to those living in the land of unemployment, giving them hope that they’ve not been forgotten.
There are those in shock who’ve had their lives upended by the decisions of adult children.
I have several close friends struggling to understand why their daughter would rather live as a man, or their son as a woman. And do you know what hurts them perhaps most of all? Though the parents hold biblically traditional views on gender, they have watched in dismay as children like theirs are denounced online by politicians and even fellow believers as heated words fly in the culture wars. If you are one who has not had this experience, be tender – oh, so very tender! – with those who have.
As we lean back from the table this Thanksgiving, let’s lean into gratitude. If it’s been a hard year, you may need to dig deep to find reasons to be thankful, including ways in which you are a “have not.” But rather than rejoicing in the painful life situations we’ve not had to experience, let’s ask the Source of all our blessings to help us be sensitive to those undergoing trials right now.
Through many dangers, toils, and snares,
I have already come;
’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
Grace will carry us all. It knows the way Home.
~ Maggie Wallem Rowe, 2024