Living In the Valley

Text: Ezekiel 37:12-14

Behavior Aim: To expect complete restoration in your life.

Happy Thanksgiving! It is interesting that uttering those words can both created an atmosphere of celebration as well as one that’s somber and shrouded with unpleasantry. We are in the midst of the holiday season, one that is designed to invoke joy and happiness throughout the land. Now let me be the first to address the elephant in the room and the nemesis of Christian conversation with people of diverse faith traditions. Thanksgiving is not a Christian holy day. In fact, none of the holidays on the American calendar that the Christian church celebrates is biblically mandated, not even Good Friday, Easter, or Christmas. In fact all holidays celebrated in this culture are capitalistic and driven by financial gain.

Have you noticed that that there is a holiday pretty much in every month that is associated with some kind of commercial gain? January: New Year’s Day - sale, February: Valentines Day/ President’s Day - sale, March: St. Patrick’s Day -sale, April: Easter -sale; May: Mother’s Day-Sale, June: Father’s Day - sale, July: Independence Day sale, August: vacation sales, September: Labor day/ Back to school sale, October: Columbus Day sale, November: Thanksgiving/Black Friday sales, December: Christmas Day sales. Every month is strategically set up to give people a reason to spend money and celebrated something even it is not relevant to their core existence.

So if this is so, why do Christians also celebrate these holidays, birthdays, etc.? It is because we as people are apart of a culture that is American. It is not just Americans, people around the world celebrate some of these same holidays.