Finding your inner “thank you” . . .

Did you know that for every one inhabitant in Greece there are no less than ten olive trees?  That’s a lot of olives.  I recently did my part to consume some of their bounty on a ‘Steps of Paul’ cruise in the Mediterranean.

Katakolon.  Athens.  Patmos.  Kusadasi.  Ephesus.  Smyrna.  Pergamon.  Dikili.  Istanbul.  Kavala.  Philipi.  Thessaloniki.  Veria.  Piraeus.  These are just some of the places in Greece and Turkey that I visited.  To hear the very words of Paul read aloud in the precise outdoor theaters where the scriptures were originally spoken was deeply moving.  I was both humbled and grateful to be there.

Besides walking the Street of the Curetes that runs from the impressive Library of Celsus to the Gate of Hercules in Ephesus.  Besides running my hand across an ancient marble pillar in Agora or posing for a picture in the Great Theater uncovered against the slope of Mt. Panayir.  Besides driving under The Arch of Galerius in Thessaloniki or braving the “I’m not sure what it is, but I’m hungry so I’ll eat it” lunch at the world famous Pudding Shop in Instanbul.  Besides witnessing the changing of the President’s guards in Athens or peering down into the prison of St. Paul in Philippi.  Besides the topsy-turvy taxi ride from Acropolis or the breathtaking beauty of the Hagia Sophia.  Besides descending into the cave of St. John in Patmos or wondering how many miles have yet to be excavated of the Via Egnatia.  Besides hunting for that last bargain at the bazaar or indulging in a second helping of baklava…besides all this was the joy of fellowship with other believers who sojourned together to experience something more.  More than a vacation or quest for adventure, we came to honor John and Paul and to better understand their sacrifice and the struggles of the early Christian Church.  As we stood together surrounded by ancient ruins, I felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude made all the more sweet with those whose hearts are bowed to the Ancient of Days.

Evenings on board the ship our table started a nightly tradition where each person would share both a “highlight” and “lowlight” for the day (an idea I stole from some good friends back in Nashville!)  That simple little habit over a tasty meal prompted some of the richest conversations of the trip.  We may have boarded as strangers, but we disembarked as friends.

Whatever this Thanksgiving looks like…some will be with family, some will not.  Some will feel free to speak of God’s goodness around the table.  Still others may share a meal together, but little else in the way of deep connection.  Whatever your present circumstance, I exhort you as Paul exhorted the saints at Philippi, “Rejoice in the Lord always.  I will say it again:  Rejoice!”  Feel free to share your lowlight, but linger on the highilights.  Find that something which you can be truly thankful for:  your job, your car, your dog, your Christian hertiage, that one friend who really gets you.  Find your inner “thank you” and let it out.  Get with someone somewhere and tell something good God has done for you.  Spread the joy.  You can bet God will be smack-dab in the middle of it…and you will experience a most treasured gift that has survived through the ages:   joyful fellowship. 

Dig for it.  Bring it forth.  Let it breathe. 

Busy excavating,

Cheri