Happy before Thanksgiving Saturday, friends!
There are no leftovers to consume today, but there should be next Saturday.
I am, however, already thinking about thanking.
Any list I would try to compose would be so insufficient as to minimize the countless things for which I am—or should be—thankful.
So I won’t subject you to a partial list.
You’re welcome.
But there is something that came to mind this morning as I read and sang my hymn for today.
Today’s hymn (#656 in my current hymnal) originally was known as “Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott” and was written sometime between 1527-1529 by Martin Luther.
The English translation in my hymnal is a non-literal 1853 translation by Frederick H. Hedge.
Hymn translation is fascinating to me because it requires not only the ability to understand the source language, but also the vocabulary to adapt the translation into a poetic form in English.
The stanza that grabbed my attention—and inspired my thankfulness—this morning is the second of the four stanzas.
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Here’s the lesson:
No matter how strong we think we are …
No matter how many resources we have accumulated …
No matter how much power and influence we have amassed …
We ultimately lose if that is where we place our hope and confidence.
If we could bring about a perfect kingdom by means of our own strength, there would be no need for God to have invaded earth in human form through the birth we will celebrate in just a few weeks.
The battle that matters ultimately must be won by Jesus. If we can win it without Him, is it really that consequential?
And if we’re only inviting Him to be the figurehead of the battles we are choosing for ourselves, are we really His?
I’m thankful that He is the Lord Sabaoth (Lord of hosts, Lord of angel armies) …
From age to age the same …
Master, not mascot.
Be amazing today, my friend.
