Thanks, but NO THANKS! (or, the longest blog ever)

(Disclaimer: This blog is not intended to offend your beliefs, it is just me voicing the world from my point of view.)

Hello Amigos!

I am blessed and thankful to say I made it through another Thanksgiving without choking on some turkey, and enjoyed a delightful spread including my favorite, CORN! and a deviled egg or two.

(Quick side note: there was a screw up in communication with my family, and my mom and both my aunts each made a tray of deviled eggs, like 30 apiece. I laughed a lot at this and then challenged my whole family to see if we could eat them all. We didn't. A blessing in disguise? You be the judge.)

Anyway. The past few days I have been thinking about all the things I have to be thankful for and all the blessings in my life. Examples being: Life, Health, Family, Safety, Shelter, and Toast (my dog). Then I started thinking about whether I was really thankful for other aspects of my life. Here's two that kept coming up-

1. Love:
Really? Am I thankful for Love? Do I cherish it. I have a lot of people in my life that I love and some who love me back. But do I cherish this love. In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul writes this:

Love never gives up.
Love cares more for others than for self.
Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.
Love doesn't strut,
Doesn't have a swelled head,
Doesn't force itself on others,
Isn't always "me first,"
Doesn't fly off the handle,
Doesn't keep score of the sins of others,
Doesn't revel when others grovel,
Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
Puts up with anything,
Trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Never looks back,
But keeps going to the end.
- 1 Corinthians 13: 4-7 (The Message paraphrase)

Do I really cherish that? Do I embrace what love is and what it looks like?

The answer to all of those questions is a 'hard to swallow' no.

I don't take pleasure in flowering truth, I don't always look for the best, I give up, I think only about me, and I sometimes look back. So, as far as me being thankful for Love and its very presence in my life, I could do better.


2. America/Being an American:

Now those who know me very well may start squirming a bit because you know my distaste for certain things about this country. I guess this is where the NO THANKS comes from in the title. Now don't get me wrong, I am very thankful for the people here, for soldiers, school teachers, nurses, doctors, and pastors. I love being in a country with the freedoms we have and the ability to be creative. I am thankful for sacrifices made and courage shown throughout our history. I am thankful for those things.

But I also despise what goes on within these borders. I despise this culture and sometimes want to just move away from it all, knowing God will provide.

The other day I was driving home from Greensboro, listening to Christmas music, which I've been doing for sometime now, and a song I've heard a lot before came on, but this time one line from the song stung my heart and made me turn red from anger. Here it is:

Do They Know Its Christmas?, by BandAid (talking about Africa)

Where the only water flowing is the bitter sting of tears
And the Christmas bells that ring there
are the clanging chimes of doom
Well tonight thank God it's them instead of you

WHAT?!?!?!?! Tonight THANK God it's them instead of you? When did we start being thankful that we are not experiencing the pain of others? Is this a Christian mindset or Western-world?

Ok, just typing this is getting me worked up. And I don't even want to get into the fact that the person singing this line is Bono, from U2 and an open Christian.

This song was recorded back in the 70's or 80's, and if this was the mindset then, I do not want to know what it is now. I think the reason I am so angry is because this lyric explains the American ideology so well.

"Well, thank God I don't have to go through that, I don't know what I'd do with out my text messaging and Sperries. If everything is OK here where I live then I'm not gonna worry about them over there."

Now like I said, I love America and all it offers, but I am tired of being force-fed all of the consumerism and amenities that I do not really need. And then I start thinking I can't live without all the stuff after I get it. People have forgotten it is not about stuff and accumulation of goods. Life is about community and relationships, risking your life for you brother and sister.

Jesus tells a parable in Luke 12:13 -21 about a rich young fool (sounds like America's 13- 25 year olds). Here this man has acquired some wealth through farming, and decides to build bigger barns for his stuff and take life easy. Big mistake. God strikes him down dead.

Then Jesus says this in verse 22 and 23- "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes."

God still strikes people down, maybe not with death, but with other things. Example; those addicted to drugs find only pain. Those addicted to spending find only bankruptcy and unhappiness the more they buy. God still strikes us down when we deny Him. It is true, God loves us, but he also loves Himself. God is jealous, and wants all of our attention. But we spend it on other things.

We worry about our lives instead of giving them away (Philippians 3: 7-11)

We focus on me, Me, ME, instead of reaching out to those who need US most (I Corinthian 9:19-23)

We find ourselves wallowing in self-pity and sin, instead of finding accountability in one another, and building the Church that Christ intended us to be. (Romans 6 and 7)

We THANK God it's them and not us, instead of going and making sure it's NOBODY. (the entire book of Acts)

See, I don't hate America. I just hate what we have created ourselves to be. I hate that we have let Satan be our guide when it comes to our time, money, and efforts. I despise that always pretty gleam in the devil's eye that says, "buy me, you can't live without me!"

I'm tired of living in the wealthy bubble and I just want people to see what else God has to offer besides a new pair of jeans and the latest Blackberry (two things I've had to ask forgiveness for coveting)

I guess in the end, the thing I am not always thankful for is Jesus and his sacrifice. If I could only embrace that love and that mindset, I would be able to break free from the Chains of Consumerism and the Locks of Addiction.

The reason I decided to through all this out on a time to be thankful, is because I want people to see that there are bigger things to be thankful for than your TV or car.

This season let's be thankful for LIFE - by giving it to missions.
Let's be thankful for LOVE - by giving it to everyone, no matter who they are.
Let's be thankful for TIME - by spending it with those who don't have much left.
Let's be thankful for OUR MONEY - by giving it to those who have none.
Let's be thankful for FOOD - by feeding the empty.
And let's be thankful for JESUS - by doing what he did.

After all...it is ThanksGIVING!

Adam T.