November 2023
“Merciful Father, we offer with joy and thanksgiving what you have first given us---our selves, our time, and our possessions, signs of your gracious love. Receive them for the sake of him who offered himself for us, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.” (LBW page 67/ELW page 107)
This prayer is part of the liturgy of Holy Communion. I went back to the “green” book, the Lutheran Book of Worship (LBW) and found it on page 67 and in the “cranberry” hymnal, Evangelical Lutheran Worship (ELW) it is on page 107 with a slight change in wording. Regardless of the wording, this post-offering prayer speaks to us of thanksgiving- not the season or the national holiday, but of true thanksgiving to the source of all being- God, the Creator.
The prayer recognizes the fact that all things: selves, time and possessions have been given to us first, out of love for us, through God’s mercy and grace. Imagine and receive that: God gives through sheer love for us. When we are able to stop and remember this, God gives EVERYDAY in EVERY WAY! We are able to respond to God by offering back to God a deep love centered (not self-centered) THANKS!
I invite you, to take time daily; giving thanks always in all ways! Take time to pause, to think and give back just a minute of your self, your time and your possessions to God- the source of all that is--the source and sustainer of your life, your time and your possessions. Do take advantage of opportunities to give thanks as a community setting as well- in weekly worship as we observe the festivals of All Saints Sunday and Christ the King. In addition to Sunday worship, we gather on Thanksgiving Eve, 6:30 p.m. at Trinity Lutheran- think about inviting someone to that service, or worship as a family before you hit the road or welcome guests to your home for the weekend!
How good and pleasant it is to be able to worship together!
God Bless you as you move through life with a thankful heart towards the Source of Life: God the Creator whom we know through Jesus Christ. And, yes, as we prepare for a holiday of Thanksgiving, may you be blessed and enveloped with peace, comfort, companionship, and the fellowship of family, friends and neighbors.
In closing, I share a prayer from a devotional called “God is Always There” by Kathleen Atkinson, OSB. Let us pray: “Marvelous Lord, free me to sing in harmony with all the Earth and all peoples. May I taste, touch, see, hear, and smell the wonders of creation as I go about my day. May I praise you in my busyness and rest. May I praise you in my words and silence. May everything that breathes praise you!” Amen.
Pastor Carol
