Caution: Ovens are Really Hot!
Thanksgiving can be quite the event. I don’t know about your household, but our Thanksgivings are marked with funny, heartfelt, and sometimes comically strange moments. Read on.
The tradition in our family is that I make most of Thanksgiving dinner. As a result, this includes many Jorritsma traditions such as never timing the turkey correctly with other dishes (the solution involves lots of aluminum foil), at some point burning myself on the oven or stovetop, the traditional groans and moans when we need to put up the Christmas tree on full stomachs, and so on.
My daughter recently reminded me that a couple years ago, Mom asked me where the potatoes were and my reply was, “on top of the Christmas tree.” The looks I got from everyone are hard to describe. Ironically, I was actually correct, but my answer was comically strange when taken out of context. You see, I had put the potatoes in the garage to keep them cold, and for some reason chose to put them on top of the box holding our artificial Christmas tree. Context is everything.
This got me to thinking about what our FPAND/NDFA Thanksgivings have looked like over the past few years, so I dug up my old emails and this is what I found.
2016: “Those opposed to our values are going to be fighting even harder than before; in the media, legislatures, Congress, and the courts. While we are tempted to rest on our laurels, they are right now regrouping and planning the next round of battles.”
2017: I apparently forgot to do a Thanksgiving email. My belated apologies.
2018: I talked about the challenges we were fighting for, “parental rights in health care for minors, school choice, and the rights of preborn children…the freedom to exercise your faith in your place of business…”
2019: Things to be thankful for “could be gone far faster than you or I can imagine. We see girls on sports teams competing with boys who ‘identify as a girl.’ The news broadcasts almost daily how another company, public figure, church, or other entity has sacrificed biblical values on the altar of political correctness. We see bakers, photographers, and other business owners taken to court over their religious freedoms… Hard work no longer guarantees commensurate rewards you can keep. The Left and the Right bicker on seemly every issue.”
2020: “I really don’t need to list the mess that 2020 has become – you all know it. From riots to political hate on a grand scale, and of course our ever-present COVID virus. We even hear health experts suggesting that we have family members use something like Zoom to be part of our Thanksgiving celebration, instead of coming over in person.”
2021: “That was before the fateful Presidential election of 2020, before COVID and vaccine mandates, before riots in our cities, before CRT became an abbreviation we recognize.”
Honestly, even I’m getting a little depressed writing these. So, what’s my point, other than highlighting the sad states of affairs over the past few years? I just gave you one side of the events from this time period, but now for the “rest of the story” from these years.
“May you celebrate the great blessings God has given to us as a nation and as individuals. Let’s thank Him for all those wins, and pray for his continued blessings on the work that lies before us.”
“I am personally thankful for many things. First and foremost, I am thankful for salvation in Christ. I am very thankful for a loving wife, amazing kids, and for living in this wonderful state, in spite of the winters. I am also thankful for Godly men and women who serve us in the state legislature and Congress.”
“We still have much to be thankful for. We live in a country where freedom is still greater than nearly every other country on earth. We have a definite majority of state legislators who respect biblical values and will defend them. Our country has never been more assertive to reclaim our conservative Christian values, meaning that many have been woken from their comfortable slumber and are now engaging in the fight.”
“He [George Washington] knew what mattered: that God was the source of his nation’s thanksgiving.”
Do you see the thread? The thing consistent across all these years was thankfulness for God’s provision and care of us. No matter what the problems were each year, the answer and reason for Thanksgiving was always the same.
Perhaps 2022 has been a good year for you – perhaps not. Maybe you identify with some of the anxiety found in the above quotes. Possibly you lost a loved one this year and are still mourning their passing.
I am here to assure you that the answer is still the same as it was in 2016, 2017, 2018…and indeed much further back: God watching over His people. As you know, we did not manage to dodge all the bad things that occurred over these past years, but the solution hasn’t changed.
North Dakota Family Alliance wishes you and your loved ones a blessed Thanksgiving and encourages you to remember the source of our thankfulness – God our Father. Oh, and on a side note: watch out for those ovens – they’re really hot!