Giving Thanks for Thanksgiving

Last week a Taiwanese lady from our church told us she wanted to initiate a traditional American Thanksgiving lunch after church the following Sunday.  It started with her asking us for advice on what dishes to make, then turned into going grocery shopping with her, and before I knew it, I was suddenly in charge of making everything!  Me-- who's never cooked a Thanksgiving meal in my life, who has trouble cooking for myself let alone for everyone in church.  Mashed potatoes, gravy, green bean casserole, stuffing, apple pie, the works!  I could have been upset, but I didn't have time-- it was already Saturday and I had too much cooking to do-- besides, I guess I never refused, so I couldn't anyone but myself.  I stayed up past 1:00am making those apple pies. Early Sunday morning came and I was bleary-eyed.  Our church sister came to the door and helped me load the dishes into her car, and we headed off for church.  

While en route she told me why she funds a large church dinner once a month; she can't sing or do anything else for the church, so this is the way she serves the congregation and shows her gratitude to God.  She also told me about her health conditions.  I never knew that she spent 5 hours in the hospital every other day getting her blood cleaned since her body cannot do it on her own.  She's been like that for 18 years.  She took my hand and placed it on her other arm, made me feel a lump of a machine vibrating under her skin.

"I'm telling you because you ask.  I don't always have to tell people how sick I am.  But when other people have health problems, I can stand in front of them and encourage them.  God has really carried me on his back these years."  She said, wiping a tear.  Suddenly I was very thankful to have this time with her.

We toiled a few hours before church started and right through the sermon.  "Shouldn't we go to church?"  I asked, exhausted.  "Feeding our spirits is more important than feeding our bodies."  

"Don't worry," she assured me. "On days I know I need to cook during church, I always watch sermons on TV beforehand.  I find time."  For having so many health problems, she sure had WAY more energy in the kitchen than I did!

The Thanksgiving lunch was a huge success!  We fed over 50 people.  The Taiwanese LOVED the mashed potatoes, and even ate the apple pie-- even though Taiwanese react to cinnamon the way Americans react to cherry cough drops (it's a medicine for them) and even though I burned the bottom of the pies due to using an unfamiliar oven and pans.  Some men volunteered to clean after the lunch-- which was a HUGE blessing -- and there was plenty of food leftover.

Thank God that I did not drop in a pathetic heap of back pain and lack of kitchen experience!

Thank God that people volunteered to help Saturday night and Sunday morning!

Thank God everyone was fed and all turned out well!

Thank God for his provision!

Thank God that He was glorified!

I am thankful.

And completely turned off of Thanksgiving food for another year.  >_<

Happy Thanksgiving!   I hope your Thanksgiving meal experience is just as joyous as mine (but maybe a little less stressful!)  It is truly a blessing to be able to celebrate God's bounty with family and friends.

"Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good.

His love endures forever."     --Psalm 136:1

In Christ,

Anna Gruen 谷恩娜

November: Blessed to be a Blessing

Last weekend our team had our annual fall retreat-- a time to run away from school-related work and be reminded of why we're here.  We took a bus to the mountains where we met a church of aboriginal people called the Tsou tribe.

Photo above:  A Presbyterian mountain church of the Tsou tribe.  Below:  Pastor teaches us how to play the nose flute.  I could play "Amazing Grace", even though they said my nose was the wrong shape to play their flutes!

The congregation is quite small with many elderly members, including five widows who own small plots of coffee trees.  In order to help these women make a living, the church buys the beans from the widows at a generous price, pays to skin and roast the beans, and then sells the finished product.  Both the widows and the church benefit from this agreement.  As part of our retreat, we learned all about processing coffee beans, and even got to spend a couple hours helping ama (grandma) pick her beans.

 The rest of the time we spent hiking in the beautiful mountains, reading God's Word, worshiping, and learning more about each team member and how we work as a team.  Special guest Sean (missionary working in the Philippines and Taiwan) helped out with leading worship and cooked us some delicious meals.

Pastor Carl led us in devotions with our theme "Blessed to be a blessing", based on God's promise to Abraham in Genesis 12:2.

In our devotions we were reminded that part of being a missionary is going through the grieving process of what we left behind.  Just like Abraham, we are called to leave our country behind and follow God to the place where he sends us.  Undoubtedly Abraham had struggles along his way.  But when following God, even hardships overflow with blessings.

"What does this have to do with my life?"  You might be wondering.  "I'm not a missionary."

We are ALL called to leave things behind as we follow God.  Maybe that thing isn't our country, but maybe it's our tendency to worry, our quick-as-lightening anger, our greedy eyes that idolize someone else's house or car or body, our grumbling tongue, our comfortable spiritual apathy.  Basically, we're called to leave OURSELVES behind and follow God to a place of blessing.  There is always struggle.  But God promises that even through the difficulties of following Him, we will be blessed and will be a blessing to others.  This promise is true for all of us.

I pray that all of us remain willing to daily leave our worldly comforts behind for the best prize-- struggling along to follow God and being blessed in the process.  Let's not be found sleeping when the Master returns home.

In Christ,

Anna

Prayer requests:

1.  For Noel, a team member who is undergoing some serious health tests this week.

2.  For a Jehovah's Witness whom I have been talking with on a weekly basis.

3.  For students, teachers, and student teachers at Concordia Middle School and their salvation, that God would open their hearts to His Truth.

4.  For the Philippines, our neighbor in Southeast Asia, which remains devastated after the cataclysmic hurricane.