Journeys 11-25-12 Post-Thanksgiving

The Sunday after Thanksgiving

I think I like Thanksgiving leftovers as much or more than Thanksgiving dinner itself.  

See at the dinner, the appearance of your plate is important.  I go for balance on my Thanksgiving plate.  Not too much of any one thing.  An equal amount of Aunt Janet’s and Sister-in-law Dianne’s contribution is critical.  And there is only one answer to the question, “Did you like the ________?”  Of course you did.  Give the wrong answer and you might get booted from the table before the pies came out.  

The truth is not important at the Thanksgiving table.  It is appreciation that counts.  You can talk about how salty the dressing was in the car on the way home.  But when you’re around that table everything is “So wonderful!” . . . (or else!).

Leftovers are a whole other ball game.  By the next meal, you’ve had a chance to sample everything and make your post-Thanksgiving dinner choices appropriately.  You can put gravy and/or cranberry sauce on everything.  Appearance has nothing to do with it.  But your leftover choices are all about gratitude.  After Thanksgiving I’m really grateful for turkey dark meat and the crust at the bottom of the stuffing pan.  I’m thankful that I’m the only one who knows that grandma’s pineapple casserole is hidden at the back of the refrigerator in that cool whip container.  

This year, I’m thankful that we have an entire weekend between Thanksgiving and the onset of Advent.  This is a very rare thing.  So we better enjoy it while we’ve got it.  Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Grace & Peace,

Journeys 11-18--12 Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day is one of the few “stopping” holidays that still exists in the U.S.A.  Sure, there are some restaurants that stay open.  Hospitals, gas stations, and fast food places don’t close.  But schools, and most businesses and manufacturing places give folks the day off for Thanksgiving.  So most Americans stop and get together with family and/or friends to eat together as a way of saying thanks for the many blessings of our lives.

 A lot of families attach other traditions to this national day of thanks.  Some go hunting every Thanksgiving.  Some have to watch the NFL or NBA on T.V..  My wife and kids have always watched the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on T.V.  We also have to have both turkey and ham, green bean casserole, southern cornbread dressing, mashed potatoes, Grandma Karges’s pineapple casserole and chutney cranberry sauce for the meats.

Since our kids were little, we’ve also added going to a movie Thanksgiving night.  A lot of those were the new Disney animated feature (i.e., Beauty and the Beast, Lion King, Toy Story etc.).

When we lived in Charleston, South Carolina, my Mom and Dad would drive from Nebraska and meet us half-way in Nashville and we’d stay at some Residence Inn and go to Cracker Barrel for the Thanksgiving meal.

This year my family will be traveling to Raleigh, North Carolina to see our son Zack.  The seniors in the NC State marching band will be recognized at half-time of the football game on Friday.  He’s really enjoyed his four years playing the snare drum in the 325 member Wolfpack marching band.  We’ll get to see Cindy’s sister’s family; including her niece’s and nephew’s families while we’re there.  

Those who were members when my Dad and Mom, Rev. Gil and Connie Karges were here (for 13 years) will enjoy seeing them next Sunday as they come and take care of things while we’re gone.

May God be with us and help us to stop to give thanks for all the blessings of our lives.  May God also be with us as we step onto that moveable walkway called Advent that will accelerate us toward Christmas at break-neck speed.

Grace & Peace,

Journeys 12-11-12 Consecration Sunday

Today is Consecration Sunday at the Doniphan Church.  Our Stewardship Campaign concludes with a special guest preacher; my wife, Rev. Cindy Karges, Senior Pastor of Hastings Grace & Junieta UMCs.  We’ll also celebrate our church’s ministry at the Harvest Dinner at noon.  Today at Doniphan, we’ll begin to give folks an opportunity to fill out commitment cards, stating our financial commitment to our church’s ministry in 2012.

Cindy has served United Methodist churches in Nebraska and South Carolina.  She has been pastor at North Bend, Morse Bluff and Hooper, NE; Trinity UMC, in Charleston, SC and Barada UMC just north of Charleston in a national forrest.  Then, she came back to Nebraska at Ainsworth and Johnstown UMCs, Seward and Beaver Crossing UMCs; Faith UMC in Lincoln and Centenary UMC in Beatrice, NE.  

The emphasis of this year’s campaign is that our giving deepens our relationship with God.  When we give of our prayers, presence, gifts, service and witness, we are doing so because we’ve felt touched by God and want to reciprocate.  God has transformed us, healed us, or let us know we’re not alone and brought us through a time of regret, repentance and forgiveness.

As in all friendships, God has made a move toward us, and we want to make a move toward God.  So we give ourselves to God; to the work of God; to things we think will make God happy.    And we give back as a sign of our seriousness about the relationship, out of our need to grow into a deeper relationship.

I’ve not met anyone yet who knows the limits of a relationship with God.  Like a great friendship, the more you get into it, the deeper you want to go.  And the relationship changes you.  Over time you become more Godlike; bearing fruits of the spirit (love, joy, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness and self-control).  It is a growth process that never stops.

Today, we celebrate what we do in response to the love of God; our giving.  Today, we stand together to say that we want to grow closer to God.  And I believe that God has let us know that the way we do that is by giving ourselves away in service to each other, and, in serving the least and lost of our world.

Grace & Peace,

Journeys 12-4-12 Hurricane Sandy

I opened my kitchen drawer and pulled out my old fashioned hand operated can opener and had to laugh.  Ever since we survived hurricane Hugo while living in Charleston, South Carolina, we’ve sworn never to buy another electric can opener again.  When you live without electricity for 14 days, you learn to appreciate clean drinking water and appliances that work without having to be plugged in.  

Watching folks in New Jersey and New York recover form hurricane Sandy this week, I had to wonder if they’d picked up a good non-electric can opener while they cleaned out the canned goods from the grocery stores.  Without a good can opener, a natural gas stove and/or propane grill, cooking without electricity is nearly impossible.

After Hugo we also learned how big your generator has to be to run a TV or refrigerator.  Those little generators are for a few lights.  You need a monster generator to give you enough juice for a major appliance.  And you smell the fumes from those generators for several hundred feet. 

I also got to thinking about those non-powered weeks so long ago.  Unless you had a gas water heater, you had to go to a lot of effort to take a shower with anything but cold water.  And the national guard imposed a strict curfew after the sun went down.  So night time meetings ground to a halt.

It was so quiet those first few days after the storm.  Then the generators started arriving and it got real noisy real fast.

We also learned that the United Methodist Committee on Relief is known to be one of the first the arrive and one of the last to leave.  We are also known as great relief and community organizers.  

Please keep the victims of Hurricane Sandy in your prayers this week.  The recovery from this storm is going to take a long, long time.  Also be on the look out for special offerings from the victims of the storm (make your checks out to UMCOR US Disaster Response, Advance #3021787).  What we give goes directly to the victims ‘cause the church has already covered the administrative costs.

Grace & Peace,