An article I read the other day lamented that the holiday of Thanksgiving has become just another secular excuse to miss work, overeat, and drink beer while binge-watching football. For most in the United States, the days of dedicating time to recounting one’s blessings and expressing gratitude to God for the abundance many of us enjoy are long gone. Even those in the U.S. who struggle often have it better than much of the rest of the world.
It seems the idea that we should be grateful for what we have rather than resentful for what we don’t is in need of a “recovery.” Imagine, if you will, the monumental change in our collective psyche if we truly embraced “an attitude of gratitude.” The gratitude list has been a standard tool in addiction recovery for decades. Imagine how this paradigm shift could change the mental health crisis, lower the divorce rate, and perhaps even make politics more collaborative. The country would be poised for a revival like we have never seen.
When the creators of AA worked out the mechanics of their program and wrote their now-famous Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, they described over a hundred people who had “recovered” – past tense. They did not develop a system where people would, for the rest of their lives, continue to struggle and attend meetings forever. They knew firsthand of a God who was willing to save them from their self-imposed torment if they would only surrender to Him.
While it is forever true that the genetics and neurological changes of a recovered person mean they should not entertain thoughts of future moderate use, they can live a life free from the slavery of addiction, fully transformed by their Creator. The idea of going to meetings forever makes sense if your “higher power” is impotent or less than the God of the Bible, or if you feel called to be there for newcomers seeking freedom. The text of their book actually says, “We have a daily reprieve contingent on our spiritual condition.” On awakening, we are to “thank God for another day and ask for His will to be done in our life as well as the strength to carry it out.”
Period.
Many of us blessed with a front-row seat to see the miracles of a recovery ministry feel that the word “recovery” is too small. When we recover data on our computer, we bring it back to where it was before, but that isn’t the experience for Christians shedding their addiction. When a person is relieved of their tiny life of compulsive use, they are freed to live the huge life God designed for them. They are in a place far beyond recovery.
They have been transformed.
In the same way, our country needs to recover the true meaning of Thanksgiving. We need a huge shot in the arm of gratitude for all the many blessings we have from our Creator so we can collectively move beyond the tiny world of Madison Avenue and our incessant search for “likes” on social media. Imagine the transformation our society would experience if we truly gave thanks rather than obediently bowed our heads as a polite gesture to the host. In the revolution I’m picturing, even the word revival seems too small.
Maybe instead of recovering this country, we can surrender and have a front-row seat to watch God transform it.
You may say I’m a dreamer – but I’m not the only one…
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