November Visions

Here we are at the month of giving thanks. We begin by giving thanks for all the saints who have come before us and the chance to follow them into God’s holiness. At the same time, we will give thanks for all the gifts of life and dedicate ourselves to God by making our financial pledges and promises for 2021. Ten days later, we give thanks for
all those veterans who have given of themselves that we might have more peace and freedom than we ever would have had without their work and sacrifice. Then, later in the month, we will celebrate Thanksgiving itself when we give thanks to God for everything.

And this year, Thanksgiving will be a little different. As most everything has been a little different this year. Most of us won’t be making long journeys to be with family. Many of us will not be able to have a table full of family and friends. And we won’t be able to have a parish hall full of people gathering to receive our thanksgiving meal and share in our fellowship. Like other times this year, we will be creative and find ways to zoom together, make and take meals to those who might otherwise not have one safely, and keep in contact and communion in ways that keep us all safe in the face of a pandemic.

How will you give thanks? What are you thankful for this year? It may just be me, but I think I am hearing folks say more and more “when we can be together again, I’ll ....” Someday we will be past the dangers of this pandemic and be able to be together in ways we have missed for over 7 months now. And there will be much to give thanks for
then! But God is also blessing us now. There is much to give thanks for right now in the midst of the pandemic. Here are a few new things I am thankful for these days:

• I am thankful that we all yearn for Eucharist at the altar
• I am thankful that we desire to be together for worship
• I am thankful for all the ways we are doing worship and prayer and study right now
• I am thankful for the ways this pandemic has helped me see priorities; to know what is really important in my life and the life of our parish with new eyes
• I am thankful for how close I feel to you all even though I don’t get to be physically close to you
• I am thankful for all the work that has been done in our church buildings including the new organs that will make our new life together richer, safer, stronger
• I am thankful for the financial generosity of so many of you in your continued support of the ministries we share at Kingston
• I am thankful for all of you who continue to find creative ways to be God’s ministers – especially your vestry and staff
• I am thankful for our virtual choir and all who sing in this strange new way to make praise and prayers in music
• I am thankful for you all who are being safe, staying home when you can, wearing masks, and otherwise honoring one another by seeking to protect one another
• I am thankful for the resources and love the diocese has showered upon us through these days I am thankful for the love we share from God that cannot be overcome by anything
• I am thankful for the hope that we will one day be able to be physically close again and know that incarnate love in a hug or a handshake or a pat on the back

There is always so much to give thanks for to God. Always. And this year is no different. I haven’t even begun with my list. What are you thankful for? How can you show God your thanks? And how might your gratefulness bring a richness to these days of pandemic, bless them and bless us all? We can expend our energies complaining that the cup is empty because of the pandemic, or we can fill it with all that God gives us today. Then we will discover that actually even now our cup overflows.
God’s Peace, Fr. Gary