Theological Truth: God’s gifts come first, then our response follows.
Come Holy Spirit and kindle in us the fire of your love. Send forth your spirit and we shall be created, and you shall renew the face of the earth.
It has been my experience that people in the food business are some of the most grateful and generous people I know. Take Gonzo Accame for example. You may remember him by his locally famous and eternally missed Gonzo’s chicken, a food truck in which he prepared and provided some of the most delicious Peruvian chicken I’ve ever had the good fortune of eating. On the evening Gonzo set up his truck for the last time, people waited for over an hour not only to get one last bit of delectable chicken and magical beans and rice, but also to thank him for the joy and generosity with which he had served the community.
I remember that night because Gonzo, never at a loss for words, seemed genuinely shocked at our community’s response. He had been generous and good-natured, quick to offer help or share an extra side of this or taste of that without any expectations in return. There were never any strings attached. No, “I’ll give you this if you give me that. Or, “I’ll donate this if you thank me adequately.” That may be what’s expected in our transactional culture, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Gonzo gave, expecting nothing in return, yet people responded with praise and thanksgiving. Generous by nature, he generated the praise and appreciation of countless people. He created an alternative economy characterized by gratitude and joy.
This is the way God’s economy works too. Notice that Jesus shows mercy to the lepers without any conditions, expectations, or discrimination. He sends all ten of them on their way to see the priest, which is to say, to be certified as “clean” and able to return to their community. This healing and restoration comes to them as pure gift without strings attached. But one of them – the least likely of all given the bad blood and ethnic prejudices between Jews and Samaritans – realizes the gift he has received and returns praising God loudly and then literally throws himself at Jesus’ feet to thank him. This is the faithful response that makes him well—not only healed, but saved. God’s mercy heals him, but it is his awareness of the gift that makes him well.
We’ve been saying the General Thanksgiving during this season leading up to our Annual Giving Campaign. We say that “praying shapes believing”. This is one of the prayers that has most shaped my beliefs about gratitude, generosity and joy. This is the part that continues to move me: “Give us such an awareness of your mercies, that with truly thankful hearts, we may show forth your praise.” Again, notice the order of things, God shows us mercy first. God doesn’t negotiate a deal with us. There’s no mafia boss quid pro quo here: “If I do this for you, there may come a day when I need you to return the favor.” God gives mercifully and generously, and then, we—with open-eyed, undefended, astonished awareness of those mercies – burst forth with authentic thankfulness and praise.
The second part of that line is where things get serious: “Give us such an awareness of your mercies….that we may show forth your praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives, giving up ourselves to your service.” This is a level of praise and thanksgiving beyond mere words. This is life-changing gratitude. Aware of all that God’s staggering mercy and generosity have done for us, we give up ourselves to God’s service and walk before him in holiness and righteousness all our days. This is more than talk. We basically pray that we will put our money and our lives where our mouths of thankfulness and praise are. We actually join God in a life of joyful giving—this is the way of faithful living that makes us well.
Brother David Vryhoff, SSJE, offers this spiritual advice: “Pattern your life after the generous God who is the source of all life, and who graciously provides all that we need. Devote yourselves, not to the acquisition of greater wealth, but to the advancement of God’s kingdom.” That’s what we’ve been doing for the last five weeks. The “Gifts Given, Gifts Received” effort has invited us to identify the gifts God has given and that we’ve received. We’ve also acknowledged the gifts we’ve offered for the advancement of God’s kingdom, or seen others offer. It may be the gifts of our choristers, or the dedication of our teachers, or the encouragement of Trinity Cares. But whatever those gifts may be, they all indicate an awareness of God’s mercies; they demonstrate that we are showing forth our praise and thanksgiving by giving up ourselves to God’s service.
Today, we will present our estimate of giving forms (our pledge forms) along with the bread and wine and the monetary collection. All of these offerings are symbolic of the giving of our very lives out of the humbled astonishment at all that God has given us. We are in essence patterning our lives after the generous God of Jesus Christ who has, and is, and will always provide all we need. And not because, or if, or when we are sufficiently grateful or generous, but because God is generous. So don’t hold back on your praise and thanksgiving. As we lift these gifts, let’s say together boldly, confidently, gratefully: “All things come of thee, O Lord, and of Thine own have we given Thee.”
