More mouths please

Recently I was discussing an audio book my husband read about the human species and their evolvements over the years. After understanding insights around the agricultural revolution and juxtaposing those with my own findings in Exodus, I'm convinced our thanksgiving dinner needs more mouths.

Once upon a time man ate what he had for the day; until learning to "store" our goods, we were not a slave to them. There wasn't "efficiency" in work, there was just a "days work".

As much as I love leftovers, I also see the commonalities between our excess in food and our excess in cultural life. The more we have, the more we think we need, and the less we trust we'll obtain our "daily bread" whatever that may involve. The more efficient we have become as a society, the more time we have. Yet somehow we have managed to use that extra time poorly because so many people describe their lives as "busy" or "stressed". We are filling our bellies fuller than needed, and we are filling our calendars tighter than possible. Why?
Well, I believe at the core of every problem exists two very simple, yet very significant problems: pride and fear. Fear can actually be traced as another symptom of pride, so in reality it's just one problem. If we are scared of not having, we must take the reins so that we are not at a loss. We are fearful we won't have enough of something, so we store up in our barns, our basements, or most recently our rental, air-conditioned storage units for a sad rainy day. We are storing up for a day that never comes, for a generation that doesn't want our "priceless" keepsakes. We store up in hopes it'll be "worth something someday," but someday escapes us because regardless of your faith or beliefs, one fact is indisputable-- everyone single person dies, and nothing tangible can be held after death.
Our pride keeps us filling our calendars so that our modern innovations, which have given us more time, don't make us look useless or lazy. Less physical labor from wonderful inventions has actually created a society of more emotional discomfort. We fear silence because we are afraid we may not like what we hear in the stillness. So we keep Alexa working, Siri talking, and Google Assistant managing our homes, our families, and our wallets. I'm certainly not living in a third world country myself; my own children think it's funny to chat with Siri, but I'll admit my fear exists in submitting to a life of comfort and control.
I've read countless comments from stranded and stressed families who have lost everything to the Camp Fires of California. People who had more to lose seem more upset about the loss. Those who have all their family in tact, but lament of not having anything, surprise me. They have ALL their family members alive and well. Shouldn't that be enough? I pray to God it would be enough for me. Similarly, those Israelites who lost everything after exiting slavery in Egypt began to grumble about food and water. Those are legitimate things I think I'd complain about too, but they'd just seen their deliverance from ten life-threatening plagues. Would I still trust, unafraid that God would provide? Maybe they just forgot to spend time alone with God because life wasn't slave-driving work anymore. It was peace, yet hot desert wondering. Hot desert? Hot fire? Busy calendar? Too much time... too many complaining mouths.
All these fun juxtapositions shouldn't come as a surprise; rather, the contrast should evoke a momentary pause of reflection, since few of us have time to reflect on anything but our "feeds" and "likes" these days. It is imperative that we spend time alone with God. Either to ask ourselves the tough questions, or simply invite more stranded mouths to our dinner tables this Thanksgiving. If you don't have time, than give up something to make room. Skip a meal, cancel a meeting or end a regular commitment so that you can make room for God to change your perspective or your priorities.
I'll go ahead and invite anyone who doesn't have a home, a family, or a meal to our house this Thanksgiving or anytime after that. I'd seriously love to share the blessings God has given us this year because if I don't live out what I believe, what is the point?
You are more than welcome to share in our crazy, learning lives! Just bring thankfulness in your mouth.