This was my first Thanksgiving away from home. To that extent, it was my first major holiday away from home. Many of my fellow Racers faced a hint of sadness as we prepared to celebrate and give thanks away from home, but how appropriate is it that we have been removed from everything we're usually thankful for for this year's celebration?! Jesus tells us the cost is great to follow Him, and we were all told to abandon our familiar regularities and comforts in order to press further into Him. While I admitedly felt as if it wasn't truly Thanksgiving Day simply because it was so warm and humid here in Vietnam, our teams did offer thanks to each other and to God throughout the day.
I was fortunate enough to help a handful of people serve at a local restaurant, Bread Of Life (www.breadoflifedanang.com). This eatery employs deaf people, who comprise the entire kitchen and serving staff. My fellows and I arrived at 10:30am to help prepare the Thanksgiving feast, set tables, and welcome customers, who were mostly Westerners. It was a great experience for me because I've always expressed my disgust with having to touch peoples' half-eaten food and dirty dishes. Apparently God found humor in presenting His servant as a bus-boy, picking up plates smeared with mashed potatoes and gravy and bits of turkey. But strangely enough, I found it incredibly gratifying and rewarding!
After serving lunch, we treated ourselves to the meal, sitting in unity with smiles and full bellies. We were then released, taking the opportunity to nap at a local coffee shop before returning for the dinner shift at 5:30pm. There were fewer patrons for dinner, aside from all the other Racers, whom we also got to serve! It was loads of fun, bringing turkey and pumpkin pie and mint hot cocoa to our friends who were all starving for a bit of American cuisine.
So this Thanksgiving, I was away from home, in the muggy warmness of Vietnam, but I was more thankful than any year before this. God blessed me through the Bread Of Life, literally. (John 6:35)
