What Remains

By |Published On: November 25, 2019|Categories: Inspiration, Joni's Posts|

“And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.”

Colossians 3:15

The other day, as I was waiting in line at Michaels, I overheard the woman behind me say to her friend, “I love the holidays, but I just want them to be over already.” Does that sentiment resonate with you? Is the stress of meeting expectations… or family tensions… or wishing things were the way things were… are these things stealing the joy of celebrating? That nearly happened to me the first time I got out of the hospital after my diving accident.

I was stuck in a hospital and rehab center for more than a year before I was allowed to ‘go home’ in 1968 to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family. I was so glad to be out of the hospital, but at the same time, everything was different. And it never seemed more obvious than when it came time for Thanksgiving dinner. For me, it was a miserable, yet unbelievably sweet time around our dining room table. For one thing, sitting in my wheelchair, my legs could not fit under the table.

At the last minute, Mom and Dad quickly removed hot casserole dishes and bowls of steamy vegetables and transferred everything to a side counter, while my sisters lifted the table to place phonebooks under the legs. As the cause of so much trouble, I felt deeply embarrassed. My awkwardness only worsened as peas and carrots kept sliding off my special spoon. I had worked hard to learn to feed myself, but instead, my sister Jay ended up feeding me. I felt so weak and needy.

Although my weakness and neediness made me feel miserable, to be honest, that first Thanksgiving home from the hospital ended up being unbelievably sweet – it struck me how caring and supportive everyone was; we were… family. And none of us had ever experienced such a tender sense of togetherness and neediness. The very things that highlighted my paralysis and my dependence also gave room to showcase the 1 Corinthians 13 kind of love our family shared. That night, it made dessert taste, oh, so sweet. I was home in the best sense of the word!

“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

1 Corinthians 13: 4-7

So Friend, as you pull out old family recipes – or look up new ones on AllRecipes.com – take a moment or two and read 1 Corinthians 13. I know it doesn’t say things like “If I have the gift of a Pinterest perfect dinner spread, and can manage all cooking times,” but – I think it will go far in giving you a sweet Thanksgiving… even if the pies flop.

–Joni Eareckson Tada

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