Cedric Pisegna - Thanksgiving is Thanks-living

Welcome to «Live with Passion»! I’m Father Cedric Pisegna. Thank you so much for tuning into the program. I am producing a series about authentic discipleship. As disciples, we want to praise God for his goodness. We want to thank God, be filled with gratitude. That is the will of God for us in Jesus. Let me share with you 1 Thessalonians chapter 5. It goes like this. Paul writes, «Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus». We just heard Paul write, «It is the will of God for you to be thankful, to give thanks, not for all circumstances, but in all circumstances».

And as disciples of Jesus, we must dedicate ourselves to thanksgiving. If you’re Catholic, we do that at Mass. Eucharist means thanksgiving. But even if you’re not Catholic, in prayer, during the course of your life, during your journey, give thanks. There’s a song that I love to sing at Mass and at church services, and it’s called, «Open My Eyes, Lord». It goes like this: Open my eyes, Lord. I want to see your face. Open my eyes, Lord. I want to see. Then it goes on. Open my ears, Lord. I want to hear your voice. Open my ears, Lord. I want to hear.

Recently, they sent NASA, sent up the James Webb Telescope, and now it’s orbiting out about a million miles from the earth. And it is sending back images that are unprecedented. I saw on a website what looked to be stars, thousands of them, but they weren’t stars. Those were galaxies. Most of God’s work, we can’t see, but some of it we can. And oftentimes we don’t even appreciate it. Or sometimes God speaks our name and speaks to us, but we don’t hear. I think being a person of gratitude and a disciple is all about looking and listening and appreciating because it’s so easy to become jaded. The truth is God’s wonders are all around us. We just have to have the eyes to see and the ears to hear and notice. A poet, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, once wrote, «Earth is crammed with heaven. Every common bush is afire with God, but only the one who sees takes off their shoes. The rest just sit around and pluck blackberries». The world is full of the fire of God. We just need to be able to see it, even in the ordinary.

Sometimes it’s the ordinary things where God appears to us. I was on an elevator one time, and as I was going to press the floor, I think it was number six, I noticed right underneath the button there were these little bumps, and I felt them with my finger, with my thumb. It was Braille. There are so many people in life that are blind who would die just to be able to see, and we take it for granted. I know a woman who has macular degeneration. She has to have shots in her eyes. She can only see out of her periphery because she’s going blind, and she would love to be able to see. Things like that, that we need to be thankful for, simply being able to see.

I think about the writer Helen Keller. Of course, she was blind and deaf and mute, but she wrote some things. She learned language. And in her book «Three Days to See, » Helen Keller imagines that she could see. And she taught in her book, she taught us to appreciate the gift of sight, the hidden beauties of life that we can see. And she invites us to imagine that we were gonna lose our sight tomorrow, and how would we look at life right now if we weren’t gonna have any vision anymore, if we were gonna be going blind?

I think a lot of Thanksgiving is simply about appreciating life, appreciating your sight, appreciating being able to hear. The studio that I’m filming at has an upstairs. It’s called the Green Room. That’s where I prepare, that’s where I have lunch, that’s where I study my notes. To get to it, I got to go up a whole bunch of stairs. And I thought about as I was walking up, thank you, God, that I can walk, that I can go up these stairs, that I’m not in a wheelchair and I can’t make it up there. Little things are large things. It’s all about appreciating life. I heard about a fifth-grade class. They were studying geography, and they had a pop quiz about the Seven Wonders of the World.

And most of the class agreed in the pop quiz that the Seven Wonders of the World were the Great Pyramid, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Great Wall of China, the Colosseum, Christ the Redeemer, Taj Mahal; Chichen Itza, a pyramid in Mexico. But one fifth-grade girl said something completely different on her quiz. She said that the Seven Wonders of the World are to see, to hear, to touch, to taste, to believe, to hope, and to love. Wow. These are wonders that God has given us. It’s a matter of appreciating the blessings.

Count your blessings. I know what it’s like. Sometimes the distractions and the hardships and the difficulties, we focus on that. Today, I want you to focus on your blessings. You wanna be an authentic disciple? Be thankful. Give God thanks in, not for, in all circumstances. Albert Einstein, this is attributed to him, he said there’s really only two ways to live your life: as though nothing is a miracle, or as though everything is a miracle. And when it comes down to it, everything is a miracle. Wow, just look around. Look up at the stars. Look at your own body, the way the brain works, the way your body works. Everything is a miracle.

Go to the Gospels, It’s full of miracles. And there was one miracle that appears in all four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Only one appears in all four. It’s the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and the fishes. You remember the scene. There’s thousands of people because Jesus is preaching. They’re all gathered. And Jesus takes a few loaves and a few fishes and holds them up, and he gives thanks for the little that he had. And as he gave thanks, they were multiplied. That miracle is in all four Gospels. You know what that tells me? That as we give thanks, multiplication occurs, abundance occurs, blessings occur. We don’t give thanks in order to receive anything. We give thanks because God is good all the time, and we want to give him thanks and praise him.

But I’ve discovered, as you give thanks, things multiply, time multiplies. Oftentimes, when I’m burdened with all kinds of different things and I’ve got a lot to do and gotta go here, gotta go there, it’s amazing how it seems like time will slow down so that I can do everything that God asked me to do as I give thanks in all circumstances. I submit to you that every miracle that Jesus ever did, think for example about the raising of Lazarus from the dead, right before Jesus raised Lazarus, he gave thanks to God that he was being heard. I submit to you that the wedding feast of Cana, water into wine, raising the dead, healing the sick, calming the storms, I submit to you that before every miracle that happened, Jesus gave thanks. And God worked through that thanks with abundance.

You want abundance in your life? Give thanks. We all know about tithing and giving. That’s what’s called a thank offering. And we give simply because we want to give back to God. But the bottom line is, is that God is not outdone in generosity. When you give, you’re sowing a seed, believing for abundance. And God oftentimes will take that seed and multiply it back to you. That’s what thanksgiving is. I call it thanksgiving is thanks-living. You praise God with your mouth. You give your resources. And of course, your behavior ought to be thanks-giving. Thanksgiving is thanks-living. Paul the Apostle was in jail with his friend Silas. There were two missionaries proclaiming the gospel everywhere. And they were put into jail for proclaiming the gospel.

This is in Philippi. As they’re in jail, in the middle of the night (talk about giving thanks in all circumstances) the middle of the night, they weren’t moaning and complaining like the rest of the prisoners. They were singing and praising God, giving thanks to God. And it says in the scriptures that all the prisoners were listening to them. As they were giving thanks, as they were singing, all of a sudden, all of a sudden, as you’re giving thanks, things can change. There was an earthquake. The doors burst open. They were free to go. The jailer comes running up to Paul and said (obviously, it was a miracle) and he said to Paul, «What do I gotta do to be saved»? And then of course, Paul says, «Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you and your whole household will be saved».

It’s a beautiful thing. And it all happened because of thanksgiving. And that’s what I mean. Thanksgiving leads to abundance. It leads to open doors in your life. As an authentic disciple of Jesus, we need to be filled with gratitude. Thanksgiving, actually it’s an attitude. I think about the history that we have in the United States. We have Thanksgiving Day, the fourth Thursday of every November. A little history about Thanksgiving. Of course, we all know about the Mayflower and landing at Plymouth Rock, right outside of Boston. Well, in 1620 some Puritans felt oppressed, Christians, very strict in their religion. They decided to leave England and head for the New World.

The Mayflower, that was the name of their ship, they left. There was 102 passengers, 66-day journey, very difficult, a lot of torment, a lot of problems and trials. It was a hard trip. Diseases, storms, they finally made it, went through a tough winter. Actually, of the 102 passengers, only 50 were left by the time they gave thanks at that meal. 1621, a year later, they celebrated Thanksgiving. Those who survived, they celebrated a successful harvest. They celebrated a safe passage and they celebrated God’s blessing.

According to a journal that was taken at that time, there were 22 men, 4 women, 25 children, and an equal number of Native Americans. It was a three-day festival of Thanksgiving, three days. And what was on the menu? Was it turkey? Maybe. We’re not quite sure. Possibly turkey. But definitely fowl, deer, and because it was near Boston, I’ll say it in Massachusetts twang, lobster. They had all kinds of blessings, probably no pies, no sweets. And of course, in 1863, President Lincoln proclaimed a national day of Thanksgiving, fourth Thursday in November, and it all had to do with memory. That’s what Thanksgiving is. We give God thanks for the blessings that we have, but Thanksgiving Day had to do with the memory of a safe passage, a memory of God’s protection, a memory of a bountiful harvest.

And in the same way in our life, Thanksgiving comes by thinking, reflecting, thinking about the blessings. Count your blessings, not just the hardships. Count the good things that God is doing in your life. I think about what I put right by my chair where I do my studying and do my praying. Put a piece of paper, and I put it right on the wall. And on that piece of paper, I list things to be thankful for. Simple things, if you can call them that, like my health, the good parents that I had, salvation, the Holy Spirit, the wonderful ministry God has given to me, and I can go on and on and on. I have a whole list of them sitting right there, and oftentimes I’ll just sit down and I’ll just pick out one and simply thank God for it. That’s memory.

Memory is so important when it comes to Thanksgiving. Look at the facts. God created us out of nothing. God has sustained us throughout our life. He has provided for us, protected us, has a glorious future. And I like to say this, every heartbeat, every breath, every thought, every moment is a gift from God to you and me. It’s a matter of appreciating it and giving God thanks. You’ll see that I’m wearing my religious habit. I’m a Passionist priest, dedicated myself with vows about 40 years ago. My vows are this: poverty, chastity, and obedience to God. And I have also taken my first vow, and that has to do with the sign that I’m pointing to. That means the passion of Jesus Christ. That first vow is to meditate on the Passion. I like to pray the Stations of the Cross. And when I meditate on the Passion, it’s not something morbid, thinking about death and suffering. What I’m doing is giving thanks, worshiping Jesus for his total sacrifice for me and for you on the cross.

That’s Thanksgiving. You meditate. You remember. If you’re Catholic, that’s what we do at Mass. It’s called dynamic remembering anamnesis. We remember the Passion at Mass. We give thanks. We remember our salvation. They do that at Passover. Jewish people do that at Passover. They remember God’s miracles in the past, the splitting of the Red Sea, ransoming them from Egypt, the passage through the Red Sea into the Promised Land. You remember so much in such a dynamic way that the miracles of God, the activity of God is brought right into the present. That’s the beauty of thanksgiving. You count your blessings instead of the hardships. You focus on the good things of life.

In the 12-Step Program, if you’re familiar with the 12-Step Program, for those who have admitted that they’re an alcoholic or overeaters or Drugs Anonymous, those different programs, gamblers. There’s something called an attitude of gratitude. They thank God for bringing them into recovery, and those in the program thank God in attitude of gratitude for keeping them in recovery day by day. Really important to have that attitude of gratitude. Remember what I said, thanksgiving leads to abundance, leads to miracles, and it leads to recovery. There’s blessings with Thanksgiving. We don’t give or give thanks to get things back. We do it out of a pure motive simply because God is worthy. As I said, every heartbeat, every breath, but blessings come with thanksgiving. Think about people that give to me. I give them thanks. I’m so grateful. People have lavished goodness upon my life, and I want to return something, some way, by telling them thank you. That is proper etiquette, to say the least.

Read about a man who uses a wheelchair. One time he was asked if it’s difficult being confined to the wheelchair. And he said, «I’m not confined to my wheelchair. I’m liberated by my wheelchair. If it wasn’t for my wheelchair, I would be bed bound and confined to the house». And I thought to myself, what an attitude. That’s called reframing your situation, whether it be your job or your house. You look at things with a new perspective. Can you imagine? He saw his wheelchair as something that liberated him because he wasn’t stuck in bed.

What about your job or about your house? Right now, there’s a humanitarian crisis going on at our borders. Immigrants are coming into our country. They would love to have your job. They would die to be able to have a house like yours. And you might be thinking, «Well, my house is small and my job, there’s all kinds of afflictions there and troubles and trials and tribulations». Reframe it and appreciate it. It’s a blessing. Give God thanks in all your circumstances. That’s authentic discipleship. In his book «Atomic Habits, » James Clear recalled the advice given to him by a Coach Watts. He noted that most people say things like, «I have to get up early and go to work. I have to cook for my family». Instead, he advised a word change. Instead of «I have to get up, » «I get to get up». Instead «I have to cook, » «I get to cook for my family». Instead of «I have to wake up early, » «I get to wake up early».

I think about that in my own life. I’ve been given a great platform for proclaiming the gospel. I’m on three major Christian networks and many stations and a lot of radio stations, but it demands work. It demands raising money. I have to write programs and produce them. I have to find outlets, and that’s always hard to do. There’s a lot of work involved, and sometimes I’ll lay there in bed and I’m about to get up and I go, «Oh, I have to do this or I have to do that». Wait a minute. Thank you, God, for choosing me, for anointing me. Thank you that I get to be a preacher, that I get to reach out to all these people, that I have all these partners and benefactors supporting me. This is an amazing life, and I am grateful. That to me is called reframing, having an attitude adjustment. That’s what thanksgiving is. Thanksgiving is thanks-living. And you can do it too.

Remember, this is the will of God for you: to give thanks in all circumstances. And as I said, God is worthy of all thanks. We’re not just giving thanks to anybody in general. We’re giving thanks to God, the God who loves us, protected us, provided for us. Jesus is our Redeemer and Savior. God is worthy. We get a glimpse of heaven in the book of Revelation: angels, multitudes, myriads, living creatures, elders, all falling down before God in praise and thanksgiving, the saints giving God thanks. Wow, you too. Stir yourself up. I wanna encourage you to give thanks and praise to God. We thank God for his goodness. We praise God for who he is. Impeccable character.

One time I was on an airplane sitting there and I was next to a woman, young lady. She looked at me and struck up a conversation, and she said, «Hey, what do you do for a living»? And I said, «Well, I’m a Catholic priest, and traveling to do some preaching». And she said, «Well, I have a theory about this». She said, «I think people are born to do what they do. For example, some people are born to be policemen. Some people are born to be firemen. Some people are born to be doctors. And I think you were born to be a priest». And I looked at her and I said, «Well, thank you for saying that, but I’m not quite sure if that’s true in my case, because for me, I was born and brought up Catholic, but I really didn’t like religion, and I didn’t like ritual, and I didn’t like all that stuff.

And I fell away from the Catholic Church. I didn’t ever really want to become a priest. It wasn’t something I was dreaming about or something that I liked. But then when I was a teenager, Jesus touched me, and I was filled with the Holy Spirit. And I went through a transformation. I became thankful and I praised God. And then I received a call to proclaim the gospel, a call to priesthood». There is a Psalm, Psalm 116 says, «How can I make a return to the Lord? The cup of salvation, I will raise. I will call upon the Lord’s name».

That’s exactly what I do at Mass. I raise that cup of salvation. What am I saying? That priesthood is a call, yes, but to me, it’s a response in thanksgiving for what Jesus has done for me on the cross. And what I was telling that young lady is I don’t think I was born to do that. I’ve done it in thanksgiving. Yes, it was a call. God has given me life. But my priesthood and all priests, we are priests because of thanksgiving. Same in your vocation. You are called to be a disciple. Live it with thanksgiving. As I said, thanksgiving opens doors, makes abundance come into our life, brings people and keeps people in recovery. And most of all, thanksgiving is the will of God for us in Jesus. As Paul the Apostle wrote, «In every circumstance give thanks, for that’s the will of God for you in Jesus». And as you do, you will be an authentic disciple, giving praise and thanks to God, and glorifying him by your words and by your life. And don’t just live, live with passion.