Happy Thanksgiving!

It’s so difficult to believe that we are finally to the holiday season. And yet it also feels as though it has been at least a decade since March with all we’ve been through in 2020.

As we officially kick off a month and a half of dozens of holidays, today is the day to take a moment to be thankful.

It is very true that this year has given us many things to grumble about – from masks to stay at home orders. For some, this year has taken homes, livelihoods and cities by hurricane, fire, or earthquake. And still for others of us, we have lost some of those closest to us.

Yes, there are many things we can be grumpy about. Be frustrated with. Be downright angry for.

And yet, think about the remarkable resilience of the human spirit. Think of the ways we have surrounded one another with care and comfort like never before (literally, since we’ve had to do it masked and at a distance). Think of the ways we have rallied to support our health care workers and other essential professions. Think of how people are getting creative and using tons of energy to keep our traditions alive, even if in new ways.

There is so much to celebrate about this year, if we just take time to look around and find it.

What is more – no matter what anyone may say – God has never left us. God’s love and presence has been with us throughout everything we have faced. God has been working ferment to see the world flipped upside down so that the Kingdom may continue to grow. And God has been opening our hearts in new ways so that we might start fighting for each other, instead of against.

So celebrate this Thanksgiving. Be safe, please. And give thanks for all the miracles that have happened this year. All the miracles that still lie ahead of us. Because God’s love will always make sure they keep on coming.