Every year, it seems, we complain about how quickly the holidays are coming and how much of the year has flown by, but this year our annual gripe is somewhat legitimate. Thanksgiving is early this year. In fact, with the fourth Thursday coming on the 22^nd of November, Turkey Day is as early as it can possibly be. Does that mean that we have an extra week to shop for Christmas gifts, or is it just an extra week for us to get stressed about the holiday season?

On the one hand, this is a relaxing week for many. In Gwinnett County the kids have the whole week off from school. College kids have come home to eat a good meal and get their laundry done, and many of you are using some days this week to get out of town and see family. It can be a wonderful time of year. After all, what's better than turkey, mashed potatoes, and football?!

On the other hand, for way too many people, the five-week sprint to Christmas that begins this week is a stress-filled daily reminder of all the things that they do not have. For many Americans, finances are still quite tight. The so-called financial recovery has not come to their doorsteps. And the pressure to buy, buy, buy leaves them feeling empty and inadequate. Many of us have this idea in our heads about what the perfect Thanksgiving table looks like or exactly how our extended family should look and feel when they come over for Christmas dinner. But the reality of our lives does not match the idyllic picture in our minds. Some of us live alone and do not have a big family to gather around a Thanksgiving table. Others have lost a spouse or have loved ones in far-flung places, and still others have relatives right here in town, but the idea of having dinner with them fills us with anything but Christmas cheer! For all of these reasons and more, the holidays can be a season of unmet expectations and frustrations.

So perhaps you and I have a more important role to play than ever. Perhaps as the church that lives out of a decidedly different story, we can help bring the collective anxiety of communities down a few degrees this month. Maybe Epiphany can be a safe place where people can open up about what they're really feeling about their extended families. Maybe this can be a place where no one feels judged over the elaborateness of our holiday plans or the size of our gift-giving budget.

Maybe this can be a season of truth-telling and true caring for one another as we wait in hope for The Truth to be born in a manger.

God loves you, and so do I!

Pastor Devin

pastordevin@epiphanysuwanee.org