Choosing Thanksgiving

Disclaimer: This post is a few days late and may sound a bit cliche. However, this is me continuing to process life so Jason says I should post it. :) 

Although Thanksgiving was Thursday, this past Sunday was our celebration day here at Mbingo. The entire ex-pat community got together next door to celebrate with a traditional American feast (though substituting chicken for the turkey, and having a few things from cans that you can't find fresh here...). Our contribution was 7 layer salad, sweet potato casserole, two apple pies, and a gluten-free apple crisp.

Thursday was both hard and good. It began with me trying to eat breakfast, drink my coffee, and read my Bible with both boys throwing fits for unknown reasons. I sent Jason a text asking for prayer for grace for the day. I wanted to be home – for just the day – to watch parades, cook with my mom, grandma, and sisters, enjoy a feast of delicious and familiar food with all of my family together, and then just chill and watch football with my dad, grandpa, and brothers for a while. Maybe we could also play some games, watch a movie, go on a walk...

I think the fact that Thanksgiving is not a holiday here made it even harder. Jason had a regular workday and it was just a normal day of household chores, errands, meals, and naps for the boys and me. When Jason got home, we worked together to make a quick but nice meal that tasted a bit like home – chicken, mashed potatoes, salad, and sweet potatoes. We got to skype for a little while with both sides of our family, which was a lot of fun. We showed them Zeke trying to crawl and Nathaniel talking and playing ball. It was so good to see their faces and hear their voices. Some days it feels so normal to be here now and “home” feels so far away. Other days everything here feels foreign and “home” seems like the only thing that will bring comfort.

I was so tempted on Thursday to eat a bunch of chocolate, have a pity-party, and turn away anyone who knocked on our door. I wanted to curl up with the boys and watch movies and be sad that we are half-way across the world instead of with our families. However, as the day began with Nathaniel throwing a fit over the size of the portion of banana bread I gave him, I quickly realized that as his mother, it is my responsibility to teach him what thankfulness is. Yes, we pray and thank God for our food before each meal. Yes, we tell him to be thankful for the things God has given us. Yes, we even have a holiday each year devoted to thanksgiving. But is this enough? If I don’t model thankfulness to my son – on holidays and on every other routine day – who will? Our world is definitely not overflowing with gratitude. Everywhere you hear people grumbling and complaining over everything. It is a huge part of our fallen nature to focus on the negative, frustrating, and irritating things in life and people. When I first wake up in the mornings, I often notice the ugly mold re-growing before I notice the beautiful sun that is highlighting the wall. I usually notice how tired I feel before I think about the fact that I woke up strong and healthy. Our very nature turns away from thanksgiving.

However, as Christians, we have been given a new nature by Christ. We now have the ability (by God’s grace!) to turn toward thanksgiving. It is a beautiful gift that we can give to the Lord and to the world. It is such an encouraging thing to be around a thankful person. Someone who is consistently focused on what they DO have instead of what they don’t. Someone who has energy and passion FOR something instead of against something. Someone who sees the amazing gifts they have been given and uses them to the fullest. These people are like a refreshing breeze. 

So Thursday I chose thanksgiving. 

I chose to teach my children, open my windows and doors, reach out to other people, enjoy the moments, and thank the Lord for His overabundant blessings. 

I chose to thank Him again for a strong, loving, hard-working, and God-fearing husband who is also an amazing father and surgeon. 

I chose to thank Him again for our rambunctious, fun-loving, talkative, joyful, adventurous, all-boy two year old who keeps me constantly on my toes.

I chose to thank Him again for our energetic, roly-poly, interactive, and bright-eyed 8-month old baby boy who strengthens me in so many ways. 

I chose to thank Him again for our godly and loving parents and grandparents who have given us (and our boys!) a wonderful foundation to build our home upon. 

I chose to thank Him again for our siblings, nephews, aunts and uncles, and friends who are such a wonderful gift and encouragement to us. 

I chose to thank Him again for our new home in Cameroon and the wonderful community that is here.

I chose to thank Him again for meaningful work, a house we can welcome people into, nutritious food, health, enough money to meet our needs and even many of our wants, and the list goes on and on... 

Why do I so often waste my breath and time grumbling when there is so much to be thankful for??

Oh Lord, please develop in me a heart of deep gratitude. When my emotions don’t feel grateful, let me choose thanksgiving. May we teach this beautiful art to our children by the way we live – day in and day out.