The Ultimate Gift of Thanks
by Rick Cadden Associate Pastor of Administration and Operations Columbus Avenue Baptist
The
I had been out of work for a while and with three small kids at home
it was getting difficult to just put food on the table much less
paying all the bills. The week of Thanksgiving was quickly
approaching. Becky and I and our family were not looking forward to
dealing with a house full of relatives for the holidays as we normally
do. Becky was the only one working at the time so it got us by, but we
were behind on everything, especially grocery shopping. Becky worked
part time at a Christian school for a large church in town. She had
been there for over 10 years and was liked by all. Her peers were all
ladies that had taught school and worked together for many years and
had a close bond together. They were very encouraging to Becky and I
through this jobless ordeal we were experiencing.
Towards the end of the day, Becky came walking in from parking the car
and came in through the kitchen door from the garage. She was sobbing
with tears running down her face, extremely emotional. I was shocked
and nervous as she tried to utter out words of what had happened. All
she could manage to get out was “go look at the car”. I instantly
thought car wreck and asked if she was alright. She could only cry
profusely and utter the words again “go look at the car”.
I headed for the garage as she followed me still crying. I looked all
around the outside for damage and the car was not damaged. I remember
her pointing and then saying to look in the back of the car. I peaked
in the rear windows and could not figure out what was there. Back then
our car was a large four door station wagon with the third seat that
faced backwards. I rolled down the back window and peered in. There,
with all the seats folded down to the front seat, were bags and bags
and bags of groceries. Each bag was overflowing with food and
condiments. I looked at Becky and asked “Where did all this come
from?”, and she started crying again and all she could get out was
“work”.
We started unloading all the bags, carrying them to the kitchen. By
the time we got them all in, the kitchen counters were covered with
bags all around the room. There were turkeys, hams, and all the
fixings for a Thanksgiving meal to die for. There was so much food we
could not fit it all in the food pantry cabinets. We had never had
that much food, even when we were both working fulltime. This was an
incredible miracle, and just in time for Thanksgiving.
Becky finally stopped crying long enough to explain how this could
happen. Being in work environment where there was a close bond, she
had mentioned to the other staff that I was out of work and how things
were tight at home. My wife is not a beggar and I am sure she was just
venting and looking for some encouragement. Without her knowing it,
the director of the school sent notice to all the teachers a few days
earlier asking them to bring a bag of groceries to the school without
Becky seeing or knowing it. At some point in the day they filled her
car up with all the food and when it was time to leave, the car was
full. When Becky got out to her car, there she saw all the bags
filling the whole station wagon. She then drove home, crying all the
way in thanksgiving for this generous offer of love, still crying when
she got home and walked in the kitchen and greeting me like that. You
now know how we got to that point in the story.
That day we learned a new lesson about thanksgiving and what giving
was all about. A blessing beyond belief had been poured out on our
family by a simple gesture of a bag of groceries by so many givers. I
am sure that when asked, the ladies thought a bag of food was no big
deal. Multiply that by dozens of people and you have a huge blessing.
To top it all off, it was during the time of year we celebrate
Thanksgiving. That simple gesture of giving carried us through one of
the most difficult times our family has ever experienced, being
jobless. Never discount the fact that a small gift can be taken by God
and be multiplied to meet a big need.
We will never forget the day that Becky came home crying profusely,
and I thinking she had a wrecked the car only to find it was full of
food. Now every year at our house for Thanksgiving, we load up with
people. We invite all the family, their spouses, their kids, their
friends, our parents, sisters, whoever can come we invite to join us
each year. The house is overfull and there is not enough room for
everyone. Some cook, some bring food, some clean, some just sit
around, but we are all together. For us Thanksgiving is about giving
back. The house is full, chaotic, noisy, people everywhere, but
somehow we manage to sit them all down for a Thanksgiving meal
together. I believe that day back when our car got filled with food,
it changed our lives forever.
Another day we will never forget is when Becky came home again with
the car filled with food, crying profusely again just a few weeks
later. Yes, they did it twice!
|