Tag: Thanksgiving

TGFI, Volume 532: Thanksgiving plus the intersection of astrophysics and Christmas

You’ve heard of TGIF? This is TGFI: Things Glen Found Interesting

On Fridays I share articles/resources about broad cultural, societal and theological issues likely to be of interest to Christians in college. Be sure to see the explanation and disclaimers at the bottom. I welcome your suggestions, so if you read something fascinating please pass it my way.

Things Glen Found Interesting

  1. The 19th-Century Influencer Who Invented Thanksgiving (LuElla D’Amico, The Dispatch): “Hale wanted something different—not in opposition to the Fourth of July, but in addition to it. She believed the nation needed a day centered not on military victory, but on home, gratitude, and shared belonging. Again, this is why she doesn’t fit neatly into our ideological bins. She championed national unity, yet she believed that domestic life—largely women’s work in the 19th century—could mold a republic just as importantly as more public-facing work. If the Fourth of July taught independence, Hale believed Thanksgiving could teach interdependence: that a nation is sustained not only by the freedoms we fight for, but by the commitments we keep to one another around a shared table.” 
    • Super interesting. Even more interesting: she wrote “Mary Had A Little Lamb” — WOW. Established Thanksgiving and wrote a beloved childhood rhyme — what an absolute legend!
  2. How the Elite Behave When No One Is Watching: Inside the Epstein Emails (Anand Giridharadas, New York Times): “People are right to sense that, as the emails lay bare, there is a highly private merito-aristocracy at the intersection of government and business, lobbying, philanthropy, start-ups, academia, science, high finance and media that all too often takes care of its own more than the common good.… Generally, you can’t read other people’s emails. Powerful people have private servers, I.T. staffs, lawyers. When you get a rare glimpse into how they actually think and view the world, what they actually are after, heed Maya Angelou: Believe them.”
  3. A monument to answered prayer begins to rise in a secularizing England (Yonat Shimron, Religion News Service): “Last week, Gamble, 56, broke ground on that vision — a 168-foot-tall architectural landmark that is expected to be one of the largest Christian monuments in England, if not the world. (Christ the Redeemer, the iconic statue of Jesus in Rio de Janeiro, is 98 feet.) It is planned to open to the public in 2028. The Eternal Wall of Answered Prayer, with a price tag of 45 million pounds (or $59 million), will not, however, feature any familiar Christian icons such a cross, a fish, a lamb or a representation of Jesus. Instead it will consist of a giant white Möbius strip stretching nearly the size of a football field, upon which a million small rectangular bricks will be overlaid, each with a digitally linked story of answered prayer accessible on a mobile app.” 
  4. What Thanksgiving Means to Me (Garry Kasparov, Persuasion): “The notion of a free society is abstract. Thanksgiving celebrates abundance, and abundance is tangible. You can taste it. Smell it. Hear it. The turkey and mashed potatoes on your plate, the chatter with loved ones, whom you’re free to visit—these are the fruits of a free society.”
  5. The Nones Project: Well Being (Ryan Burge, Substack): “The most apparent result from this graph is that Christians do express a demonstrably higher level of life satisfaction compared to the non-religious in the sample. On the scale from 1–7, both Catholics and Protestants scored an average of 5.2. That’s just slightly above ‘somewhat satisfied.’ Among the nones, the group that was clearly the most satisfied were the Nones in Name Only (NiNos) at 5.0. Slightly below that were the Dones at 4.85, then the SBNRs [Spiritual But Not Religious] at 4.75. The group that easily scored the lowest of all four types were the Zealous Atheists at 4.57.”
    • Emphasis removed for readability. Reading the article and looking at the data, I think the Dones do come off a little worse than Burge concludes. He doesn’t explain it in this article, but the Nones in Name Only are people who check “nothing in particular” on surveys but who nonetheless regularly do religious things — envision someone who comes consistently to church but isn’t actually sure if they consider themselves Christian.
  6. The Incarnation Sheds Light on Astrophysics (Deborah Haarsma, Christianity Today): “When Jesus was conceived in Mary, he took on atoms from her—as we all do from our mothers—and those atoms had histories stretching far beyond our solar system. Those atoms assembled into genes to give shape to his bones and blood and into organic chemicals shared with all life on earth. Each cell of Jesus’ body embodies his love for his creation—not only humans but also the animals, plants, mountains, and rivers often mentioned in Scripture. His very atoms once glowed in beautiful nebulae and powerful supernovae in the far reaches of space. Indeed, when God took on human form, he took on all of creation.”
  7. Why Euthanasia Feels Intuitive (Tim Challies, blog): “Because aging and death are the ultimate means through which we prove we have no true autonomy and through which we lose our independence, euthanasia is a means of avoiding what is difficult, humiliating, or seemingly intolerable. In this way, euthanasia is a natural or perhaps inevitable result of Western culture.… Though this is already plenty troubling, here is something that troubles me even more: Having been raised in this society, my instincts intuitively accept euthanasia. I do not want others to make my decisions for me and I do not wish to become dependent upon them. In fact, I would feel a significant degree of guilt were I to need others to care for me, to be inconvenienced on my behalf, or to have them put their own dreams on hold in order to ensure my provision. There is an abhorrent way in which it all just makes sense, in which my instincts accept it as good, or as acceptable, at least.”

Less Serious Things Which Also Interested/Amused Glen

  • Mom Continues Longstanding Tradition Of Making Cranberry Sauce For No One (Babylon Bee)
  • Jesus Bot Is Always on Demand (for a Small Monthly Fee) (Jessica Grose, New York Times): “This version of Jesus looks like he stepped off the cover of a romance novel and sounds like a management consultant. He offers the same kind of canned guidance that I could get from a LinkedIn hustle bro, with a dash of Scripture and an upsell (a home screen widget with personalized verses for just $39.99 a year!) attached.” 
    • This probably should go in the section above, but I only like to have seven links up there.
  • Bedtime Prayers (Pearls Before Swine):  Nov 18, 2025
  • Soul Mate (Pearls Before Swine): Nov 21, 2025
  • Thai woman found alive in coffin after being brought in for cremation (Associated Press): “Pairat Soodthoop, the temple’s general and financial affairs manager, told The Associated Press on Monday that the 65-year-old woman’s brother drove her from the province of Phitsanulok to be cremated. He said they heard a faint knock coming from the coffin. ‘I was a bit surprised, so I asked them to open the coffin, and everyone was startled,’ he said. ‘I saw her opening her eyes slightly and knocking on the side of the coffin. She must have been knocking for quite some time.’”

Why Do You Send This Email?

In the time of King David, the tribe of Issachar produced shrewd warriors “who understood the times and knew what Israel should do” (1 Chron 12:32). In a similar way, we need to become wise people whose faith interacts with the world. I pray this email gives you greater insight, so that you may continue the tradition of Issachar.

Disclaimer

Chi Alpha is not a partisan organization. To paraphrase another minister: we are not about the donkey’s agenda and we are not about the elephant’s agenda — we are about the Lamb’s agenda. Having said that, I read widely (in part because I believe we should aspire to pass the ideological Turing test and in part because I do not believe I can fairly say “I agree” or “I disagree” until I can say “I understand”) and may at times share articles that have a strong partisan bias simply because I find the article stimulating. The upshot: you should not assume I agree with everything an author says in an article I mention, much less things the author has said in other articles (although if I strongly disagree with something in the article I’ll usually mention it). And to the extent you can discern my opinions, please understand that they are my own and not necessarily those of Chi Alpha or any other organization I may be perceived to represent. Also, remember that I’m not reporting news — I’m giving you a selection of things I found interesting. There’s a lot happening in the world that’s not making an appearance here because I haven’t found stimulating articles written about it. If this was forwarded to you and you want to receive future emails, sign up here. You can also view the archives.

Giving Thanks is Christlike

I hope you’re on track for a wonderful Thanksgiving! Paula and I are prepping to host a bunch of Stanford students who couldn’t get home for the holidays.

Thanksgiving is not a Christian holiday in the same way that Christmas is, but it is a holiday that I am always delighted to celebrate because gratitude is one of the most important Christian virtues. The phrases “give/given/giving/gave thanks” occur 28 times in the NIV translation of the New Testament. Half of those times it is Jesus Himself giving thanks, so to give thanks is Christlike.1

So be grateful this week and always! This Thanksgiving, I pray you feast upon delightful food while surrounded by people you love and that the delectableness of the desserts is only exceeded by the quantity of the laughter. May gratitude fill your heart and animate your mouth.

  1. Here are the fourteen times (scattered across ten passages) the phrases “given/gave thanks” are used in reference to Jesus. Interestingly, they are all related to food.
    * Matthew 14:19 — And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.
    * Matthew 15:36 — Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, and when he had given thanks, he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and they in turn to the people.
    * Matthew 26:26–27 — While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you.”
    * Mark 6:41 — Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to his disciples to distribute to the people. He also divided the two fish among them all.
    * Mark 8:6–7 — He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. When he had taken the seven loaves and given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to distribute to the people, and they did so. They had a few small fish as well; he gave thanks for them also and told the disciples to distribute them.
    * Mark 14:22–23 — While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take it; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and they all drank from it.
    * Luke 9:16 — Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke them. Then he gave them to the disciples to distribute to the people.
    * Luke 22:17, 19 — After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you.… And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”
    * Luke 24:30 — When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them.
    * John 6:23 — Then some boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the people had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. ↩︎

Things Glen Found Interesting, Volume 480

On Fridays I share articles/resources about broad cultural, societal and theological issues. Be sure to see the explanation and disclaimers at the bottom. I welcome your suggestions. If you read something fascinating please pass it my way.

Things Glen Found Interesting

  1. I Give Thanks in the Bright Darkness (Christina Gonzalez Ho, Christianity Today): “It seems that, historically, Thanksgiving was not meant to be a purely celebratory day, a time to luxuriate in self-satisfaction, but rather a day to hold gratitude in tension with sorrow, suffering, and sin—to acknowledge the brightness and darkness that always exist simultaneously in the world.” 
    • Christina is an alumnus of Chi Alpha.
  2. The Conquest of Canaan Explained in 6 Minutes (Gavin Ortlund, YouTube). Recommended by a student. This is a topic I think I explain pretty well, but Ortlund does it better. Worth your time if the destruction of the Canaanite cultures bothers you.
  3. And They Began to Be Merry (Kevin D. Williamson, The Dispatch): “The miracle at Cana isn’t water becoming wine—any old magician could do that sort of thing. Whatever it was that Jesus was about, it wasn’t stupid party tricks. The miracle is that the Ruler of the Universe cared about such a little thing as the social anxieties of a bunch of nobodies in an obscure little corner of the world of no particular importance, and that He loved them the way a father loves his children—and what kind of father offers just enough at a time like that when he has, at his disposal, the very best?… The supernatural stuff is one thing, but consider the magnificence of that gesture, the sheer audacious style of it. I do not care if you are the most cynical atheist walking the Earth—it is impossible not to admire the panache. He bends reality into a new shape, makes the universe follow new rules, to help out a friend, and He does it cool—nobody even knows what happened except for the waiters.”
  4. What I Wish Someone Had Told Me About Motherhood (Daniela J. Lamas, New York Times): “For my generation— and, I’d argue, especially for women in my generation — the decision of whether to have a child has become highly fraught. It’s tied up with our desires for fulfilling careers, our willingness to risk a shift in the identities and lives we have built. It’s tied up in an understanding of all that went into making motherhood a choice that we get to make. With so much at stake, it is so easy to become paralyzed by indecision. But perhaps what I would have wanted to hear when I was dithering was something like this: Having a child has been extraordinary.… And for some reason, I feel almost embarrassed to admit how much I love being a mother. I spent my adult life until now with this idea that I was different from — and maybe even a little superior to — my peers who chose to spend time building their families. I was so worried about what a child would mean for my career. But what I did not anticipate was that what I would want itself would change.”
  5. This Maverick Thinker Is the Karl Marx of Our Time (Christopher Caldwell, New York Times): “Mr. Streeck has a clear vision of something paradoxical about the neoliberal project: For the global economy to be ‘free,’ it must be constrained. What the proponents of neoliberalism mean by a free market is a deregulated market. But getting to deregulation is trickier than it looks because in free societies, regulations are the result of people’s sovereign right to make their own rules. The more democratic the world’s societies are, the more idiosyncratic they will be, and the more their economic rules will diverge. But that is exactly what businesses cannot tolerate — at least not under globalization. Money and goods must be able to move frictionlessly and efficiently across borders. This requires a uniform set of laws. Somehow, democracy is going to have to give way.” 
    • Caldwell is an interesting thinker, so as soon as I saw his byline I knew I had to read the article. Worth a ponder.
  6. ‘A God Who Continually Surprises Us’: A Q&A With a Theologian Who Changed His Mind About Gay Marriage (Peter Wehner, New York Times): “…I would say that the way I was appealing to the Bible or the way I was interpreting the Bible was too narrowly focused on the few texts in Scripture that do say something explicitly about homosexual relationships. The dictum in Leviticus is that for a man to lie with a man as with a woman is an abomination. And those texts had a certain impact on my opinion. But I think I was I was far too narrow in the way I thought about how the Bible speaks to issues like this. What I came to think over time is that what the Bible shows is not some isolated proof texts or isolated statements of law, but it shows us a much bigger picture of God as a God who continually surprises us, continually surprises his people with the scope of generosity and grace and mercy.” 
    • This is one of many revealing moments in this interview. Hays stopped believing what the Bible actually says in favor of what he takes the deeper message of the Bible to be. It’s as though he subordinates the real text of the Bible to the hypothetical text of the Bible in his head.
    • This article makes me sad. Sharing because it’s a clearer-than-usual presentation of an argument that I often encounter, and its clarity makes the weaknesses of the revisionist position more evident.
  7. How Universities Cracked Down on Pro-Palestinian Activism (Isabelle Taft, New York Times): “Universities have seen just under 950 protest events this semester so far, compared to 3,000 last semester, according to a log at the Nonviolent Action Lab at Harvard University’s Ash Center. About 50 people have been arrested so far this school year at protests on higher education campuses, according to numbers gathered by The New York Times, compared to over 3,000 last semester. When students have protested this fall, administrators have often enforced — to the letter — new rules created in response to last spring’s unrest. The moves have created scenes that would have been hard to imagine previously, particularly at universities that once celebrated their history of student activism.”

Less Serious Things Which Also Interested/Amused Glen

Why Do You Send This Email?

In the time of King David, the tribe of Issachar produced shrewd warriors “who understood the times and knew what Israel should do” (1 Chron 12:32). In a similar way, we need to become wise people whose faith interacts with the world. I pray this email gives you greater insight, so that you may continue the tradition of Issachar.

Disclaimer

Chi Alpha is not a partisan organization. To paraphrase another minister: we are not about the donkey’s agenda and we are not about the elephant’s agenda — we are about the Lamb’s agenda. Having said that, I read widely (in part because I believe we should aspire to pass the ideological Turing test and in part because I do not believe I can fairly say “I agree” or “I disagree” until I can say “I understand”) and may at times share articles that have a strong partisan bias simply because I find the article stimulating. The upshot: you should not assume I agree with everything an author says in an article I mention, much less things the author has said in other articles (although if I strongly disagree with something in the article I’ll usually mention it). And to the extent you can discern my opinions, please understand that they are my own and not necessarily those of Chi Alpha or any other organization I may be perceived to represent. Also, remember that I’m not reporting news — I’m giving you a selection of things I found interesting. There’s a lot happening in the world that’s not making an appearance here because I haven’t found stimulating articles written about it. If this was forwarded to you and you want to receive future emails, sign up here. You can also view the archives.

The Gratitude of a Preacher

As a preacher I have a lot to be thankful for. First, of course, I have the sorts of things everyone should be thankful for. I’m thankful for puppies and kittens and stars. I’m thankful for my health and for my family. I’m thankful that I live in a peaceful place in this war-torn and violent world.

But there are some additional things that I as a minister ought to be grateful for, and three are on my mind today. I am grateful for those I minister to, I am grateful for those I used to minister to, and I am grateful for those who make it possible. 

First, I am grateful for those I minister to. So often in his letters Paul expresses thanks to God for the people he ministers to:

1 Thess 3:9 may be the most powerful of these verses:

How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you? (NIV)

I can relate to Paul — the students in Chi Alpha bring me joy. Actual delight. Words fail me at times. And this isn’t a one-off sentiment Paul expresses:

  • 1 Cor 1:4 – “I always thank my God for you”
  • Eph 1:16 – “I have not stopped giving thanks for you”
  • Col 1:3 – “We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you”
  • 1 Thess 1:2 – “We always thank God for all of you”
  • 2 Thess 1:3 – “We ought always to thank God for you” (all these are from the NIV)

Paul knew that when you’re a minister, you should realize that the people God has given you are a gift. More fully, you are a gift to them and they are a gift to you. 

Someone like me should be grateful that anyone shows up to hear me preach. I minister to busy Stanford students. These people have been working all week. They’ve got homework to get done. They have textbooks to read. And they’ve got cute people to woo. And they’re gonna take time every Wednesday night to walk across campus and listen to me talk about the Bible? And then they’re going to find me throughout the week to ask me questions about God and how to follow Him more fully and wisely? That’s wild!

I am grateful to them, and I am grateful to God for them. My students are amazing and I love them so much.

Second, I am grateful for those I ministered to years ago.

In 3 John 1:4 the apostle tells us

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth. (NIV)

Paula and I recently took a trip to DC, New York, and Boston to visit some of our alumni. It was so exciting to catch up with everyone, but one of the things that made the biggest impression on me was meeting children who only exist because God called Paula and me to minister at Stanford over two decades ago. Their parents met in Chi Alpha, and likely would not have begun to date had we not provided the environment in which their relationship grew. And now there are kids. Actual adorable humans of infinite worth who exist as a direct result of our ministry. It’s wonderful.

Seeing our alumni filled me with inexpressible joy, especially when I spoke to so many of them about the churches they attend and how their faith has grown through the years.

Our alumni are extraordinary people and I am always touched when they have time to meet with their old college pastor, and even more when they have kind words to share and fond memories to reminisce over.

Third, I am grateful for those who make it possible. 

In Philippians 1:3–5, Paul says

3 Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God. 4 Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy, 5 for you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ from the time you first heard it until now. (NLT)

Paul is so thankful for the Philippians that he thanks God for them every time he prays because they are his “partners in spreading the Good News about Christ.” What that means is unclear until you come to the end of the letter. In Philippians 4:15–16 he explains

15 As you know, you Philippians were the only ones who gave me financial help when I first brought you the Good News and then traveled on from Macedonia. No other church did this. 16 Even when I was in Thessalonica you sent help more than once.(NLT)

The Philippians partnered with Paul by sending him money to help him do ministry. And Paul was grateful.

So am I. Our ministry is only possible because of a whole lot of people like the Philippians. They give us financial help and Paula and I are so very thankful.

So I’m grateful. And if you’re a student in Chi Alpha now, or if you were a student in Chi Alpha years ago, or if you are one of our financial partners, know this: I am especially grateful for you this Thanksgiving. May you be blessed.

Happy Thanksgiving!

At Thanksgiving I often think of Corrie Ten Boom and her fleas. 

If you don’t know the reference, Corrie and her sister Betsie were Christians who were thrown into a Nazi concentration camp and placed in a barracks infested with fleas. Straightaway Betsie said that the only way to respond to such a place was with Scripture and reminded Corrie of the Bible passage they had read that morning from 1st Thessalonians 5, especially verses 16–18.

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

1 Thess 5:16–18

So Betsie led Corrie in prayer, giving thanks that at least they were together, that they had a Bible with them, and then Betsie began to give thanks for the fleas which had bitten their legs. Corrie thought that was silly and said, “Betsie, there’s no way even God could make me grateful for a flea.” But Betsie insisted.

Later they learned that the fleas which afflicted them also protected them. The guards wouldn’t enter the barracks because they didn’t want to get fleas. Corrie realized that Betsie had been right to be thankful for the fleas — the fleas prevented assaults by the guards and the fleas also gave them a measure of privacy allowing them to lead a Bible study in a concentration camp.

This story and many others are told in Corrie Ten Boom’s book The Hiding Place and I highly recommend it to you (the story of the fleas unfolds from pages 218–231 in the edition I consulted to get Corrie’s quote right).

Even in challenging situations there are occasions for gratitude. I don’t know all you’re going through right now (I barely know all I’m going through right now!) , but I’m sure there’s at least one part of your life that you wish was different than it is. Whatever the hardship, I pray it passes quickly. I also pray that while it lasts God opens your heart to experience genuine gratitude in the midst of it. 

May you have a delightful Thanksgiving — and remember the fleas!