Happy Sabbath. Written by Joshua Wallace Thanksgiving, most of the time it seems like the most overlooked holiday that we celebrate. As soon as Halloween is over Christmas begins, right or wrong that just how it happens. For me Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. Maybe it’s how I was raised, but Thanksgiving is about being well thankful. Sounds simple, but a lot of people have trouble with the simplest of things. In my family every Thanksgiving after we eat we go to the living room get in a circle and take turns saying what we are thankful for. For me that’s what the holidays are all about, Christmas is great, giving and receiving gifts are always fun, but the simplicity of being with your family and taking a moment to ponder how blessed you are is something that has a profound affect on me. In this fast pace society that we live in, the small things tend to take a backseat to our need for instant gratification, we forget that things can take time to come around. The need for attention and doing everything now is taught to us when we are young. “The early bird gets the worm” gets far more attention than “good things come to those who wait”. I’m guilty of this to, more so than a lot of people I know. I’m on pins and needles when I text or try to communicate with others. I don’t know why I get so impatient, I need to take the time and be thankful that I even have the ability to communicate so easily with others. Whether its waiting for you phone to buzz or for the other shoe to drop, Thanksgiving is an opportunity to go back to a simpler time, relax put the phone down, enjoy the time with your family members. In the same way the Sabbath is like a weekly Thanksgiving, it gives us a day to rest, spend time with family, think and thank God for the things he does in our lives. It’s a free gift that you just have to accept to have it. We don’t have to do the things we do every day of the week, we can set it all aside and take some time away. One way I like to do this is by getting out in nature. One thing I’m thankful for about Eugene is that it is close to the woods, mountains and the ocean. It gives me options to get lost in different terrains that God has created. Getting out in nature helps me relax, stop thinking about everything else and just be in the moment. With all the natural beauty around its almost impossible to not stop worrying or thinking about what might happen tomorrow or what happened yesterday. In many ways most of the things I struggle with point back to solutions I have been taught for quite awhile now. 1. Have a thankful heart 2. Have a forgiving spirit 3. Have a child like trust in God 4. Have an optimistic attitude 5. Give more-expect less 6. Live simply 7. Love generously 8. Care deeply 9. Speak kindly 10. Free your heart from hatred and your mind from worries. Worry is pain suffered for something that hasnt happened and most likely won’t 11. Get in the word-Bible- morning worship 12. Leave the rest to God. We know that list as The Gospel According to Poppie: That brings joy, happiness and eternal life. This was the basis for the Happy Sabbath Messages that Poppie has been writing for the last three years. These messages are not only something that I am thankful for, but something I can look back on when needed. Just like we want to be thanked for the things we do, so does God. Psalms 50:14 says “Offer unto God Thanksgiving”. Many verses in the Bible talk about singing or giving thanks to God. This is a goal of mine to say thanks more often, for the things that we take for granted like waking up in the morning, having those who love us. I write this message, for my parents aunts, uncles, cousins’, friends, my Huckleberry and Jesus, who I am truly thankful to for my life now and eternally. https://youtube/watch?v=Bk_7wUR2Wdg
Posted on: Sat, 29 Nov 2014 05:05:56 +0000
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