Today is Thanksgiving but Christmas is Coming

Today is Thanksgiving Day and with it we begin the Holiday Season in America. Granted,

commercialization of our most sacred of holidays continues. Every year corporate America infringes more and more on the time set aside for family and friends to celebrate the blessings of Almighty God.

It started as an isolate thing a few years ago when one or two retail companies started opening at midnight. This continued until last year, again with one or two companies, stores started opening at 4 or 5 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day itself.  I suspect our oldest and most widely celebrated holiday will soon only be a calendar holiday like so many other of our holidays. I do not believe America can any longer be called a Christian nation. Not because some other religious group has become dominant because they haven't. We are now pretty much a secular state whose religion is commercialism.

It is not that secularism and commercialism have thrown out the holidays themselves. To the contrary. What they have done is stolen them. Very subtlety and almost imperceptibly they have turned Thanksgiving and Christmas from their created purposes to marketing tools. This has been done principally by using them as the occasion of the "Great Buy." Good old American capitalism at work.

Don't get me wrong. I am not opposed to capitalism. Quiet the contrary, I participate gladly in it. However, there are some things that outrank capitalism and should always temper it. In my mind Thanksgiving and Christmas are two events whose expressed content should always trump our insatiable thirst for more things.

Thanksgiving may well be our oldest official holiday and should be exactly that, a day of giving thanks. George Washington introduced the concept on October 3, 1789 when he declared, "Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor . . .  Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be." Thanksgiving should not only be sacred to Christians but to Americans as a whole and celebrated by all people. It is a day sacred to Americans and should not be profaned.

Christmas is also a holiday that has been embedded in the American psyche from the earliest of times but took on it's present form during Victorian times. It is a time when America (then as now largely Christian by religion) celebrated the birth of Christ Jesus as the beginning of our spiritual redemption. It was to be a time of simple remembrance and thanksgiving specifically for the birth of the Christ child as the fulfillment of God's promise to provide salvation. "Today your Savior, the Lord Messiah, was born in the City of David." (NIV).

In many ways, the demise of Thanksgiving is the overflow from the debacle we have made of Christmas. We have taken virtually every element of the Nativity and turned it into a marketing tool by which we ply our goods. We have done this to the point that we have squeezed all the original meaning of the holiday out. Indeed we are changing our greetings, ostensibly to not offend none Christians  but I suspect it has more to do with marketing than anything else.

I am sure I'd miss some of these trappings but believe me when I say if we ridded ourselves of some of Madison Avenue and Wall Street has done to the holidays we would discover we would be better of spiritually and we would be better off financially and emotionally. In addition, by simplifying the holidays to family gatherings where gratitude is expressed out loud for God's blessings and the birth of Christ our families would be stronger and we would again have strong family traditions that bind us together. This in turn would make for a stronger nation. "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance." (NIV)

Our modern age has not just redefined our two basic national holidays it has made celebrating as a family . . . especially an extended family virtually impossible. Cousins who were once more like siblings than cousins don't even know each other exist let alone know each others names. Families are scattered all across the country and around the world. No member of our families have the magnetism or strength of person to draw their families home as we did in my youth.

I am fortunate and thankful to the Lord that all of my children have terrific in-laws. I know that they celebrate these holidays with their own families and in-laws when not here with us.  I must confess that I now know how my own parents must have felt at holidays as they had to share their children and grandchildren with the other half of their children's families during a holiday.

But that pales when I think of the multitude of people who will be giving Thanks to the Lord without their families present and come Christmas will be celebrating the birth of our Lord alone as well.

So as you give thanks today, whether alone, with friends or fortunate enough to be surrounded by family do so with the words of Don Moen's chorus:

Give thanks with a grateful heart
Give thanks to the Holy One
Give thanks because He's given Jesus Christ, His Son

Give thanks with a grateful heart
Give thanks to the Holy One
Give thanks because He's given Jesus Christ, His Son

And now let the weak say, "I am strong"
Let the poor say, "I am rich
Because of what the Lord has done for us"

And now let the weak say, "I am strong"
Let the poor say, "I am rich
Because of what the Lord has done for us"

Give thanks with a grateful heart
Give thanks to the Holy One
Give thanks because He's given Jesus Christ, His Son

Give thanks with a grateful heart
Give thanks to the Holy One
Give thanks because He's given Jesus Christ, His Son

And now let the weak say, "I am strong"
Let the poor say, "I am rich
Because of what the Lord has done for us"

And now let the weak say, "I am strong"
Let the poor say, "I am rich
Because of what the Lord has done for us"
Give thanks

We give thanks to You oh Lord
We give thanks

*Full Text of Washington's proclamation: By the President of the United States of America, a Proclamation. Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor-- and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness.
Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be-- That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks--for his kind care and protection of the People of this Country previous to their becoming a Nation--for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his Providence which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war--for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed--for the peaceable and rational manner, in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted--for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed; and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us and also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech him to pardon our national and other transgressions-- to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually--to render our national government a blessing to all the people, by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed--to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shewn kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord--To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the encrease of science among them and us--and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best. Given under my hand at the City of New York the third day of October in the year of our Lord 1789. Go: Washington

No, your dad did not get down on one knee when he proposed.

"No, your dad did not get down on one knee when he proposed – because the romantic men know it’s about living your whole life on your knees . . . . And there is now and the beautiful boring, the way two lives touch and go deeper into time with each other. The clock ticking passionately into decades."
- Ann Voskamp

I recently ran across this in a posting on Facebook and I found to be simply outstanding. So, I decided to do something I have never before done. Instead of trying to recreate the sentiment in my own words I decided to link you to the real deal.

Maybe it is because it hits close to my own life experience  . . .  maybe just because it needs to be heard by all you who never experienced one of those choreographed marriage proposals that we see on Godvine.com, Facebook.com and Youtube.com and believe you have missed out on something. It is for all you whose proposal was not recorded on film; accompanied by a flash dance; or publically displayed at some romantic location but none-the-less abides forever in your heart as the moment something special began. I promise you that if you make the trip over to "A Holy Experience" will not be disappointed.  Thank you Ann Voskamp for sharing this. I hope you don't mind my passing it along.

A Few Veteran's Day Thoughts

I must confess that this year I had planned not to write anything for Veteran's Day. Seemed to me anything I said might just be a repeat of what I had said in earlier posts. However, today my thoughts turn to my hero . . .  my Dad!  The more I learn about his war time experiences the more impressed I am.

My father was a member of the USAAF during World War Two from 1942 until 1945. As a member of the 35th squadron of the 315th Troop Carrier Group, 52 Troop Carrier Wing, Ninth Air Force he flew routine and combat missions into "Fortress Europe" from both England and North Africa. He took part in Operation Torch, Neptune and Market Garden where he dropped elements of the 82nd. Airborne. His last major Para drop was Market Garden where for five straight days he dropped elements of the 82nd. 504 PIR at Grave, Belgium, elements of a British PIR and finally Polish PIR. Two of those five days were landings in a Belgium field to offload ammunition and food and then fly wounded soldiers to England for treatment. For all these efforts he received the AAF Air Medal with Oak Leaf  Cluster.

Once the Para drops were pretty much over he flew ammunition and fuel to General George Patton's Third Army . . . often into loosely secured LZ's. When time permitted he would fly wounded soldiers back to England and later France. I was privileged to see his plane leaving a makeshift airfield in Southern Europe loaded with British soldiers who had just been liberated from a German prison camp.

While in England he was stationed at Spanhoe Air Field just north and west of London. It was while there that he met the English lady who would become his wife and my mother. 

My mom, who was a Londoner, had received word in 1942 (just before my dad arrived in England) that her fiancé, a fine English chap, had been killed in action at Dunkirk. Somehow during the following year (1943) they met and their wartime story began. I'll  not recount it here but it was quiet a story as the "flyboy" from Hickory Creek, Texas fell for the Lady from London. Suffice it to say he once told me, "it was the smartest decision he ever made when I asked for her hand in marriage." I agree, if for no other reason than it produced me.

Now having said all that I need to say his story is the same story a lot of other soldiers from his day could tell. They all did their jobs. That's probably what makes them such a great generation. They heeded the call of their country, gave their full devotion to the task as assigned, and when they got home they went to work and built a nation. It takes men like the one at he right to really appreciate the meaning of the poppy in the lapel. These are the men and women who have seen, smelled, felt and seen the results of war up close and personal . . .  men like my Dad!

However, let me add that for every one of the men like my father who carried the fight to the enemy there were hundreds of others who kept the supplies flowing, feed the troops etc. And then there are those who have "keep the peace."

I know in my family, and I've said this before: We have had folks who have fought in every major war this country has been involved in. Frances fought in Washington's Continental Army, Robert in the War of 1812,  my Dad and his cousin (Robert Key who was killed in Natal Brazil) both in the USAAF flying C-47's, Robert in Korea (KIA), Ron and Charles Leo (KIA) in Vietnam and others in Iraq and Afghanistan. Add to that the many peacetime soldiers. In my book Hero's all.

So today, I tip my hat to all living veterans and proudly wear my poppy in my lapel for those who died in battle or who have otherwise passed into eternity.

But for me, the veteran hero I wear a poppy for today is my Dad. Thank you for being the man you were. For answering the call to duty; for faithfully executing that duty; and, for living the values for which you fought.