Three Squares a Year

Deuteronomy 16: 1-7 - "In honor of the LORD your God, always celebrate the Passover at the proper time in early spring, for that was when the LORD your God brought you out of Egypt by night.  Your Passover sacrifice may be from either the flock or the herd, and it must be sacrificed to the LORD your God at the place he chooses for his name to be honored.  Eat it with bread made without yeast. For seven days eat only bread made without yeast, as you did when you escaped from Egypt in such a hurry. Eat this bread -- the bread of suffering -- so that you will remember the day you departed from Egypt as long as you live.  Let no yeast be found in any house throughout your land for seven days. And do not let any of the meat of the Passover lamb remain until the next morning.  "The Passover must not be eaten in the towns that the LORD your God is giving you.  It must be offered at the place the LORD your God will choose for his name to be honored. Sacrifice it there as the sun goes down on the anniversary of your exodus from Egypt.

 

Moses wanted to remind them one more time that there were three important times that they needed to revere and worship the Lord…above and beyond the required offerings and tithes.  The observance of Passover…the Festival of Shelters…and the Festival of Harvest should be a great corporate celebration… of the whole tribe….at the central worship site that God would choose.  These times would require them to reflect on the goodness of God through the year…and remember what God had brought them through.

 

These festivals were not merely times to thank God…or bring him extra offerings…God wanted their thankfulness and joy mingled with just a bit of sorrow for their sin….so that they would build patience….in the trials and things he had brought them through. He wanted to make sure that periodically…they stopped to remember all that God had done…so the joy of where they were now had more meaning.

 

My first thoughts were that I don’t keep any of these festivals.  Maybe my worship at Easter is sort of Passover celebration. …and the family get together at Thanksgiving might be viewed by some as a Festival of Shelters …and if I really stretch it...I guess I could say that the ‘I love America Day’ our Church Celebrates in July is somewhat of a Feast of Harvest.  But even if I did view these celebrations as proxies for these 3 important times of remembrance… my heart knows I sure need to work on the gifts I bring God at those times.  I have to admit…I don’t always use my time at the family Thanksgiving dinner…the fellowship at our church’s Fourth of July Service…or  use my time at Easter to reflect on all that God has done for me in the 54 years he has sustained me on this Earth.

 

In essence…we should really reflect on his goodness every day…as we wake and thank God for another day…and as we lay our head down at night and ask him to protect us and help us rest. It sure can’t hurt to stop three times a year extra …to make sure he knows how much we appreciate his presence in our lives.  It shouldn’t matter whether the rules for these festivals are meant to be kept anymore…we should be so thankful that we do it more that Moses told them too.  We should start writing God a few thank you notes…just because it is the right thing to do.  We eat square meals a day...why not give him three squares a year.

 

Father...I thank you for the reminder that I should stop as many times as I can and thank you properly for all that you have done for me.  It seems so unbalanced for me to thank you for saving me…since that is a gift I could never repay.  And since you saved me….you have showered me with blessing after blessing….that I don’t deserve.  Help me to be thankful for even the storms that you have allowed in my life…and see it as the bread of suffering….that will bring me someday to a great joy when I am joined with you in Heaven. Don’t ever let me forget that you love me…and will hold my hand through anything. Amen.