Thanksgiving Peace

Its a cozy evening, candles are burning, our youngest daughter is home for Thanksgiving and she put up the Christmas tree. My part in the decorating was small but significant. There is one Christmas decoration that never gets packed away. It just moves to our bedroom and sits on my Grandmother’s old music cabinet. A handful of times it has made its way out of season to the living room as a reminder how God had provided in the past and would do it again. Tonight, the eve of Thanksgiving, it seemed only fitting to set out our decoration. This time not as a comforting reminder, but as a symbol of thankfulness, a testament to the ever faithfulness of God.

Christmas was coming and our young girls were excited. The tree was up and the music played. I can’t say I was excited–its hard to get in the Christmas spirit when you’re not sure where the food for your table will come from. We knew God was faithful and we clung to His promises, but the Christmas excitement wasn’t there. Then it anonymously arrived with a box of pre-Christmas joy. There were wrapped presents for the girls, groceries, an envelope containing money, and amongst these the Christmas decoration.

Soon after the gift arrived we received more work for our cabinet shop and the financial stress eased. Seasons have come and gone. The once sparkly-eyed girls have grown into women who now decorate their own Christmas trees. I no longer remember the contents of the gifts or the amount of the money, but the Christmas decoration that arrived that winter night will never escape my memory and the significance it holds. “Peace” in white scrollwork, birds with wings spread, and a small nativity star. Peace it proclaims, not anxiousness, not worry but peace… “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done. If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6 & 7 NLT