A Hymn as Bible lesson
“His eye is on the Sparrow,” a hymn written in 1905 by Civilla…
Eric Bess wrote an article on this piece of art entitled “Practicing Gratitude: Henry Ossawa Tanner’s ‘The Thankful Poor,’” in the November 23, 2021, edition of The Epoch Times. Bess made the point that the art might cause the viewer to consider how they are grateful and to live in a way that is filled with gratitude. He highlights the image as the source of his inspiration.
The elder man bows his head in prayer over the small portion before their small gathering, modeling prayer and thanksgiving for the boy. The boy’s face is illuminated while the elder man is in the shadow. Are we to be focused on the boy?
The elder’s straight posture and bowed head are complimented by the folding of two large hands, hands likely developed by a life of excessive labor. The boy is too young to understand the lessons learned from such an arduous life. The boy’s left hand hangs on the edge of the table while the other mimics his elder. He is halfway to being as grateful as his elder. His cup is before him anticipating the end of the prayer: he wants to eat. The elder man has set his cup aside: the prayer is the emphasis for him. In his gray hair there is wisdom. The writer of Proverbs would agree.
In both Proverbs 16:31 and Proverbs 20:29, King Solomon writes that “gray hair is a crown of splendor.” The repetition of the phrase highlights its significance. The elder man is exhibiting his “crown of splendor” by recognizing with thanksgiving the blessings of which he is about to partake. It could be observed that the boy simply has not achieved his “splendor” sufficiently to appreciate the gifts on the table before him. Are we the elder or the child?
In the same edition of The Epoch Times there was another article accompanied by a work of art that sits in tension with Tanner’s painting. In a letter from a reader, Dr. Steve Morris, entitled: “One Thanksgiving at a Time,” the article expounds upon his trajectory of recovery from alcohol and why he is thankful.
He was confronted with the reality that the “hole in his soul” prevented him from being satisfied. He called the problem an addiction to “more.” After seeking help, he entered the Alcoholics Anonymous program and sought his higher power. He began seeking God. This led him to answer the call to service at the AA Thanksgiving holiday party where members were expected to attend. Many had no other place to go. The experience left him with a different outlook on the holiday and life.
In serving the AA group he discovered great reward by giving himself away. He encountered people who were worse off than him and who needed help. Providing them help and friendship, he learned to be thankful for what he had and who he was. He stopped “feeling sorry” for himself and learned the true meaning of Thanksgiving (holiday and heartfelt action).
Dr. Morris has shared a powerful observation: giving ourselves away is great gain. Jesus taught the lesson regarding this principal in Matthew 16: 24-26:
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. 26 What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?
The lesson of these two paintings seems to build on the sacrificial notion Jesus teaches in Matthew 16. ‘The Thankful Poor’ is anchored in 1894 when Jim Crow was very much alive and well. People with darkly pigmented skin were considered “lesser than” and given economic and political and social standing well below the norm. Yet, there is thankfulness in Tanner’s painting. Their joy comes from a place that is not worldly. They are thankful.
There is little doubt that these two people experienced wicked treatment. The young man’s lack of enthusiasm for prayer with thanksgiving makes this clear. He sees little to be thankful for. The elder man appears to have a different approach. Like Dr. Morris, he has lived a life that challenged him in many ways. In digging deeper for answers both men discovered the peace of God in submitting their lives to Jesus. They recognized the need to surrender their lives, take up their cross and followed the Lord. As disciples of Christ, they have won their eternal reward.
Rockwell’s subjects are in a world at war and yet they find reason for thanksgiving. God has given them each other and a large feast, yet their young men are away from them. The celebration around the table is a reprieve from the demands of rations war brings. They are together and this makes them happy. Given the size of the turkey, they have much to be thankful for. No doubt the war effort holds them all at a level of self denial.
While both gatherings praise God for their blessings, Ossawa’s work represents the greater thanksgiving. Amid their squalor, they have found contentment and peace. Rockwell offers a bounty and thanksgiving is expected. The Apostle Paul writes, “But Godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it” (1 Timothy 6: 6-7). Look for contentment in Christ and you will find it, despite your circumstances.
Read the Song
Sometimes Love by Chris Rice
Is our world spinning backwards?
What has brought about this change?
Can’t you see that people aren’t the same…
I wish I were dreamin’, and could wake up from my sleep
And find us all the way we used to be…
‘Cause the love that used to be is dyin’
Is anybody even tryin’?
And I don’t know how, I don’t know why
But somethin’ in my soul is cryin’ (listen)…
Sometimes love has to drive a nail into its own hand
Sometimes love has to drive a nail into its own hand
One pair of hands broke some bread and washed some feet
Opened eyes and soothed an angry sea
Belong to a man who could see our deepest need
And showed us love the way it has to be
‘Cause he knew the price that love requires
And he laid down his own desires…
He stretched out his hands to save his friends
And said “no other love is higher”
(so listen to me now singin’)
Sometimes love has to drive a nail into its own hand
Sometimes love has to drive a nail into its own hand
Love can change us, love can make a way
Only Jesus’ love can change us, love can make a way
Sometimes love has to drive a nail into its own hand
Sometimes love has to drive a nail into its own hand
“There Was Jesus“ by Zach Williams
(feat. Dolly Parton)
Every time I try to make it on my own
Every time I try to stand, I start to fall
And all those lonely roads that I have traveled on
There was Jesus
When the life I built came crashing to the ground
When the friends I had were nowhere to be found
I couldn’t see it then but I can see it now
There was Jesus
In the waiting, in the searching
In the healing, in the hurting
Like a blessing buried in the broken pieces
Every minute, every moment
Where I’ve been or where I’m going
Even when I didn’t know it
Or couldn’t see it
There was Jesus
For this man who needs amazing kind of grace
For forgiveness and a price I couldn’t pay
I’m not perfect so I thank God every day
There was Jesus
There was Jesus
In the waiting, in the searching
In the healing, in the hurting
Like a blessing buried in the broken pieces
Every minute, every moment
Where I’ve been or where I’m going
Even when I didn’t know it
Or couldn’t see it
There was Jesus
On the mountains
In the valleys
There was Jesus
In the shadows
Of the alleys
There was Jesus
In the fire, in the flood
There was Jesus
Always is and always was, oh
No, I never walk alone
Never walk alone
You’re always there
In the waiting, in the searching
In the healing, in the hurting
Like a blessing buried in the broken pieces
Every minute, every moment
Where I’ve been or where I’m going
Even when I didn’t know it
Or couldn’t see it
There was Jesus
There was Jesus
There was Jesus
There was Jesus
“Love Song For A Savior“ by Jars of Clay
In open fields of wild flowers
She breathes the air and flies away
She thanks her Jesus for the daises and the roses
In no simple language
Someday she’ll understand the meaning of it all
He’s more than the laughter or the stars in the heavens
As close as a heartbeat or a song on her lips
Someday she’ll trust Him and learn how to see Him
Someday He’ll call her and she will come running
And fall in His arms and the tears will fall down and she’ll pray
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
Sitting silent wearing Sunday best
The sermon echoes through the walls
A great salvation through it calls to the people
Who stare into nowhere, and can’t feel the chains on their souls
He’s more than the laughter or the stars in the heavens
As close a heartbeat or a song on our lips
Someday we’ll trust Him and learn how to see Him
Someday He’ll call us and we will come running
And fall in His arms and the tears will fall down and we’ll pray
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
He’s more than the laughter or the stars in the heavens
As close a heartbeat or a song on our lips
Someday we’ll trust Him and learn how to see Him
Someday He’ll call us and we will come running
And fall in His arms and the tears will fall down and we’ll pray
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
You
You
We want to pray
It seems too easy to call you ‘Savior’
Not close enough to call you ‘God’
So as I sit and think of words I can mention
To show my devotion
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You
I want to fall in love with You (my heart beats)
I want to fall in love with You (for You)
I want to fall in love with You (my heart beats)
I want to fall in love with You (for You)
… Arms nailed down by Jars of Clay
Are you telling me something?
Eyes turned out
Are you looking for someone?
… This is the one thing
The one thing
The one thing that I know
… Blood stained brow
Are you dying for nothing?
Flesh and blood
Is it so elemental?
… This is the one thing
The one thing
The one thing that I know
… Blood stained brow
He wasn’t broken for nothing.
Arm nailed down
He didn’t die for nothing
He didn’t die for nothing
… This is the one thing
The one thing
The one thing that I know