Thankful For Adventism

Alex over at Spectrum Blog asked other bloggers to write up a "what I'm thankful for in Adventism" post for Thanksgiving.

Normally I find the, "what I am thankful for" questions to be superfluous but the specificity of Adventism is an interesting wrinkle. Though my answer maybe equally superfluous

The Pilgrims in 1621 celebrated a feast which we use as the model for our Thanksgiving tradition. There is only one account of the feast.

This is the way the feast was described in a first-hand account presumably by a leader of the colony, Edward Winslow, as it appears in Mourt's Relation:



"Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruit of our labors. They four in one day killed as much fowl as, with a little help beside, served the company almost a week. At which time, amongst other recreations, we exercised our arms, Many of the Indians coming amongst us, and among the rest their greatest King Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted, and they went out and killed five deer, which they brought to the plantation and bestowed on our governor, and upon the captain and others. And although it be not always so plentiful as it was this time with us, yet by the goodness of God, we are so far from want that we often wish you partakers of our plenty."

The Pilgrim’s plenty was related to their hard work and the bounty of the land which was so hard on them just the year before. But the time of the feast was a time of plenty and hope for the future, no organization was responsible for their success or failures.

So what does this have to do with being thankful for in Adventism?

Adventism is what we make it, Adventism can be a totalitarian uncompromising religion or it can be a rational and pluralistic religion. We have the power to mold Adventism. We can dwell in the past or the hard times like the Pilgrims endured; focusing on the past, dwelling on the struggles or we can enjoy what is plentiful and desire to share our good fortune. It is our hope found in God's revelation in the Christian religion whether found in Adventism or any other denomination which spurs us on. We are not there yet, we are not done yet and I are thankful for the journey.