We are looking forward to gathering on Thursday, November 20 for our annual churchwide Thanksgiving Meal. It is a gift to gather around the table with one another in order to celebrate and to give thanks. We are thankful for many things this year!
In 2023, I noticed tiny tree sprouts popping up all over my yard. It seemed like they were everywhere. I would find one, and it would lead to another, and yet another. Every year I discover them, but this year was different. It was a mast year!
A mast year is when trees produce an exceptionally large crop of seeds and nuts. In Auburn, Alabama, our most recent mast year was 2023. We do not experience a mast year every year, but we have plenty to be thankful for each year.
Whether a specific year is a mast year, we can always name the gifts and surprises for which we are thankful. Even when it is not a mast year, we can start by naming one thing, and it leads us to name another, and yet another. Gratitude has the tendency to grow exponentially!
Gratitude can open our eyes to more than we see at first. By the time we stop naming gifts for which we are thankful, we might discover is has been a mast year.
As we name things for which we are grateful, we can begin with each other. We have witnessed the love of Christ in each other! We have felt the comfort of friendship. We have learned from one another. We have laughed with each other. We have experienced joy with one another. As we begin to name one thing, it can lead us to another, and yet another.
We give thanks for the gift of the community of faith. It enriches our lives, provides us support, and calls us to serve. For all of those things, and many more, we say, “Thanks be to God!”
-Tripp