Abundance

November 14, 2023

Many people’s Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations are abundant with food, family, friends, merry-making and gifts. For many families, there is also an abundance of love. Why? Because when we are with the people we love, our hearts overflow with fullness, affirmation and happiness.

At these holiday gatherings in the last few years, there has been unusually high tension between many friends and family over politics and ideology. Many holiday tables that used to be merry are ideological battlegrounds. And in many others, a silent elephant sucks the air out of the room. As a result, some family members have cut each other off and remain estranged.

There is only one way to deal with these tensions that preserves our souls and the souls of others. Jesus demonstrated this way to us. He had to deal with friends and family who disagreed with him, but he always remained in a relationship with them. With the people he did not know but cared for, he went out of his way to reach out to them, have conversations and engage with them. Even though many were not of his ethnicity or religious background, he penetrated those exterior characteristics and communed with their souls. Jesus didn’t even let people’s sickness or sins stand in the way of connecting to them.

But when it came to the religious authorities and political officials with whom he directly interfaced, he challenged their authority. He vehemently expressed anger for what he considered hypocrisy and the misuse of power.

If we take Jesus’s behavior as a model for dealing with tension on family holidays, we penetrate the exterior layers of ideology and extend love to the souls of others. We speak to the hearts of others. We say things that connect us, such as: What was the highlight of your year? How are your mother and father doing in their new assisted living arrangement? Tell me how Robin and Allen are doing in school and with their friends. Have you completely finished your chemo? What happened with your boss’s promise of that promotion? How are you doing with the loss of Aunt Sarah? What are your travel plans for the coming year?

Also, we offer to tell stories and ask questions from our own hearts: let me tell you about a hugely funny thing that happened to me yesterday. I am so happy I bought that trip insurance, let me tell you why. I am afraid the flooding demolished my car, but I love my new one. It’s hell dealing with the loss of my trusted lab, Daisy, who was my companion for 14 years. What can I do for you when you have that operation? Such comments, questions and the behaviors they elicit preserve our souls and our connections to the souls of others.

But when it came to those in authority, Jesus took the bull by the horns. He stated his beliefs in no uncertain terms. We have that same right and duty. This is when our votes and voices can make a difference and turn the tide of abuse by power.

Around the table of abundance, we bypass our egos to connect with the essence of a friend or family member. Their essence, like ours, is part of the One Great Essence from whom we all are born and express.

Inquiry: How will you care for your and others’ souls this holiday?

Dear God,

The way is abundantly clear. Amen.

To receive Dr. Howell’s Reflections in your inbox everyday, complete the form below to begin your journey into who God has made you to be. The path to wholeness starts now!