I grew up with Norman Rockwell’s portrayal of Thanksgiving—a table crowded with steaming food and smiling faces, all the generations of a family represented. Abundance seeps from the brush strokes. And even in my lower-middle-class childhood, where we certainly went without things at times, I could feel the abundance of blessings in my family. We had good health, we were close to our grandparents, and there were always plenty of leftovers after the Thanksgiving meal.
Not every Thanksgiving I have lived out in my adult years has reflected that fullness. There have been seasons of loneliness and loss, where the table aches with the memory of who isn’t there. Seasons, too, have come with smaller plates and fewer people to share them with.
And, I’m sure, Christians who celebrate Thanksgiving in this country have faced even less “abundance”—maybe food lines, maybe shelters, or maybe they are commemorating the day in a hospital with a loved one who can’t be moved.
Whether your experience leans more into the haves or the have-nots, there is one clear lens through which we can be grateful for whatever the Thanksgiving season brings us: eternity. As believers, we can give thanks to God for his blessings to us in time, his provision for us in eternity, and the abundance this affords us to share with others.
God the Giver
We should not, of course, minimize the gracious earthly provision of our Lord. Scripture is full of praise for our God who gives! From the grain in the storehouses to the children at the table, all the things we possess in this life come from his hand. Earthly blessings are indeed good and a legitimate reason to feel joy and give thanks.
We can also take comfort in knowing that God’s provision is a testament of his care for us. Matthew 6:26 exhorts: “Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?” The passage is meant to encourage Christians not to be anxious because their needs will be met because they have value in the eyes of God. Paul reaffirms this comfort in his letter to the church in Philippi: “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:19).
What a joy that we serve a gracious and generous God who provides for us so richly! But if you are in the hospital waiting room or sleeping in your car on Thanksgiving, you might wonder, has God really provided for me?
Treasures in Heaven
The context of both the passage in Matthew and Paul’s affirmation in Philippians is helpful. Paul was writing about God’s provision from a prison cell, and in the letter he shares his grief over believers who have left the faith (Phil. 3:18) and his anxiety over the life-threatening perils that his friend endured (Phil. 2:25–30). Paul knows sorrow. He knows want. And yet, he is able to write in the same letter: “I have learned, in whatever situation I am, to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Phil. 4:11–13).
The passage in Matthew provides even more insight into this contentment. Before encouraging readers with the reminder that God cares even for the birds, the author writes that believers ought to store up treasures in heaven, rather than trying to hoard earthly possessions that can be stolen or destroyed, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt. 6:21).
In our earthly seasons of much or of want, each believer can be assured of an inheritance that awaits them in eternity through the saving work of our elder brother and lord, Jesus Christ. “In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory” (Eph. 1:11–12). In Christ we have “every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places” (Eph. 1:3) and, in him, our treasure includes the “redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight” (Eph. 1:7–8). These far surpass whatever we could possess in this life, or whatever we may sorely lack.
The Generosity of the Eternally Secure
How should this knowledge of our rich inheritance, then, shape our behavior? We ought not be spiritual misers, hoarding our blessings like Ebenezer Scrooge. No, if we know that our true wealth lies securely in eternity, where feasting awaits us, and there will be no more sorrow or pain, we should be moved to generosity with our temporary, fading earthly blessings—our money, our time, our food, our homes.
Yes, we can exercise wisdom and discernment in our giving, but we can also throw off any hindrance that fear or anxiety might play in our hospitality. The Lord knows our earthly needs and has kept safe our heavenly home.
Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.— Matt. 6:31–33
Although Paul has learned contentment, he still writes in the very next verse, “Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble” (Phil. 4:14). The church partnered with him in “giving and receiving” (v 15) and supplied his needs even when he had moved on to another city (v 16).
Christians can be marked by their generosity and giving because we belong to a God who has graciously given us his own Son (Rom. 8:32). From such a place of abundance, no matter our earthly provisions, we can give thanks to God with joy and peace in our hearts.
