Fix you a plate…

I had a really good dream last night. Like in so many past years, it was Thanksgiving and I was in my Granny’s kitchen. There was no one else there but me and her. Handing me a flimsy, compartmented semblance of a plate, she was saying in her familiar way, ‘Fix you a plate.’ If you knew my Granny, this was usually more of a command than a gentle offer. But not so much in my dream last night. 

The plate was flimsier than any I’ve ever seen and there was twice as much food to be added. She abided patiently beside me as I carefully filled the little sections. We talked thoughtfully about each dish and there was even a choice of meat at the end of the line, not just ham or turkey. The moment was filled with peace and abundance. Trying to steady my hands, I carefully carried my plate around the bar. My Thanksgiving plate had never been so full. I chose the seat on the backside of the kitchen table, under the bay window, telling her that ‘I wanted to see everyone as they came in.’ She just smiled at me.

It was so good to see my Granny. It was good to be in her warm kitchen. It was good to fill my plate. It was a good dream.

I heard a lovely devotion recently about 1 Thessalonians 5:18, ‘…give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.’ Thanks in, not thanks for. This has surely been a year of in, so much that it’s hard to be thankful for. I think God understands this, that is why the Scripture reads as it does. He knew it would be hard and we’d need reminding that gratefulness is to be found in the midst of it all, good and bad. Going on to further assure, it’s God’s will for us through the son He gave the world. In the in are abiding truths about mercy, grace and love that will never change, no matter the circumstances of our lives or the world around us.

I’m thankful for that dream. I’m thankful for the hot tears that burn my eyes thinking about it. I’m thankful for the pause it’s forced me to take. The table is still full this year. There is still goodness being served. The plate may be flimsy, but maybe if we take our time and give it a steady hand, it will probably be okay. There’s still a seat at the table for all of us. We can be thankful that it’s always being saved. We can open our hearts in expectation. This Thanksgiving may not look like we had planned or hoped and God understands this, He still abides and dwells among us.

So as I hear my Granny (more sweetly than she ever did), encouraging me to ‘fix my plate,’ I’m trying to fill it this Thanksgiving and in the season ahead. Even though the plate is feeble and my hands might be unsteady, my seat at the table is waiting and it’s saved just for me. So is yours ♥