Counting our blessings
11/24/2009 1:36:56 PM
Thanksgiving is a celebration of the Lord’s provision and most Americans celebrate with abundance: A harvest table that abounds with turkey and dressing, potatoes or rice, green bean casserole or peas with pearl onions, some variety of cranberry relish, gravy, and, yes, pumpkin pie.
But not everyone’s table will be so abundant. Based on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s annual survey on “household food security,” released last week, more than 49 million (or one in six) Americans doesn’t have enough to eat.
In the world’s wealthiest country – a place where obesity is among our most serious health issues and a very small percentage of our total food waste (about 30 million tons each year) could feed millions – some will have an empty stomach on Thanksgiving.
It’s even more sobering to consider that America’s worst hunger statistics are still far better than the best figures other nations have ever known.
In India, for example, more than 200 million people (one in four) are going hungry. Among the world’s highest in malnutrition and hunger, nearly half of India’s children younger than 5 years old are underweight and more than 70 percent are anemic.
On our own continent, more than half of Haiti’s inhabitants survive on less than $1 per day and malnutrition takes the lives of nearly one out of every three children under the age of 5.
So, as you count your blessings this Thanksgiving, consider how God is calling you to extend those blessings to others.
As you count the blessing of being in the presence of family or friends, consider extending the blessing of table fellowship to a widow or an orphan or a single person you know.
As you count the blessing of abundant food and anticipate even the eating of leftovers, consider extending the blessing of your bountiful table through Feeding America (formerly known as Second Harvest), a local food pantry or soup kitchen.
As you count the blessing of freedom and peace, a warm place to sleep without fear and a safe place to worship without war, consider extending the blessing of shelter to a foster child, a political refugee or a military veteran.
Please join us, and readers of The Layman, in counting the Lord’s many blessings this holiday season by posting your prayers of Thanksgiving here. But also, recognize this blog entry as a call to action in our various communities where hunger, homelessness and hopelessness are real issues faced by real people every day. Share what you’re doing in the name of Jesus Christ to fight poverty and hunger in your neighborhood. Your ideas, and prayers, will inspire others to do the same.