Years ago, I managed a parent’s morning out program at church, and my role included curriculum and craft planning. Oh, how I loved fall’s inspiration. I didn’t have to look beyond my front yard and calendar for ideas – leaves changing color always put on a spectacular show, and the Thanksgiving holiday built an easy theme of “thankfulness” for our toddlers.
As a mom of three, I always loved whatever crafts my kids brought home. Is there anything cuter than a turkey created from a little one’s hand or an excessively embellished construction paper maple leaf? (Though glitter might just be a teacher’s sparkly payback to parents for a classroom full of rambunctious children.)
I’m one of those people who genuinely appreciates “the reason for the season” when it comes to holidays, and at the heart of Thanksgiving is gratitude. Maybe it’s hokey, but I truly love hearing what people are thankful for as we circle around the table, drawn together by family tradition.
Turkey, dressing, and all the fixings are a fine feast for the body, but conversation and connection among people you love is a life-giving feast for the soul.
Old Testament to New, the Bible has a lot to say about thankfulness; in the ESV translation, there are 162 mentions of some form of the word “thanks.” That tells me it’s important to God. And, what’s important to God, should be important to you and me.
Proverbs 22:6 (ESV) says, “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old, he will not depart from it.” In a world that seems to be increasingly, well, rude, it is more essential than ever to instill gratitude and godliness in our children. True, children are most captive to a parent’s authority while living at home, but we can still influence adult kids whenever we’re together. When we model godly attributes, it continues to reinforce what they learned when they were young.
It’s equally important to remember that your influence isn’t limited to children in your life. Everyone we encounter can be impacted by how we live and how we treat them.
Even if you’re in the midst of a really hard season – especially if you’re in the midst of a really hard season – it’s important to look for reasons to be thankful and to express your gratitude to God.
So, with the Thanksgiving holiday nearing, regardless of who you’ll be celebrating with, why not be intentional about encouraging a thankful heart?
Here are a few fun ideas that will engage family and friends of all ages:
Make a Thankful Box. Over the years, submissions to our Thankful Box were “required” before eating Thanksgiving dinner. Paper, pens, and any old box will do. Multiple submissions are encouraged. Over dessert, while everyone is still seated at the table, it is so much fun to pull slips from the box and read what everyone contributes. We did it anonymously, and there’s an added measure of fun to guess who submitted the more creative entries.
Create a Thankful Banner. Tape a poster board or large sheet of craft paper in a spot where everyone gathers, making sure it’s at a reachable height for all. Have colorful markers nearby. Write “I am thankful for…” in the center of the banner, and direct everyone to add their own ideas. We did this for the first time last year, and I left it up for months after Thanksgiving. (Our children all live out of town and this was a sweet little way to keep their presence near – bless my mama’s heart!) What I didn’t expect were the comments from friends who saw the banner long after Thanksgiving was over. They said things like, “We need to do something like that!” and “What a great idea!” It showed me how you can guide others to focus on something meaningful and gently point them to Jesus through the answers you write on the banner.
Sprinkle your table with “thankful” Bible verses. As I mentioned, the ESV translation lists 162 Bible verses about thanksgiving. A simple way to focus on gratitude is to print out your favorite verses and place them around your table. You could also ask friends and family ahead of time to think about their favorite “thankful” verse and then share them during your Thanksgiving meal.
Include a poetry slam. Prior to your Thanksgiving celebration, invite guests to write a gratitude-focused poem. Now before you dismiss this idea, I can tell you from experience your guests might surprise you. While I’ve never done this for Thanksgiving, I’ve thrown out the challenge to our missional community (small group), and they far exceeded my expectations. I suggested writing haikus because they’re only three lines, but everyone was free to do whatever they wanted. The creativity of those both old and young was impressive. Try this, and you’ll be delighted by the response.
What are your traditions or practices that cultivate gratitude among your family and friends?
It pleases God when we express our gratitude for what He has done for us through the life, death, and resurrection of His Son. When we understand the gospel’s good news, how can we not be thankful?
So, this year as we gather around tables, when many of us are fighting hard battles, let’s find fun ways to focus on faith, family, and gratitude. The impact may linger long after the table is cleared and the dishes are washed.
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Awesome fun idea! Thank you Robin \0/
Thanks, Janet! (Happy Thanksgiving a little early.)
Robin,
What an incredible idea. I have the perfect little canister from the dollar store and I’ll cut strips of paper for thankful submissions to read around the Thanksgiving table over dessert. And I’m sharing the idea your devotional and Twitter.
Sending you Thanksgiving joy,
Lisa Wilt
Awww, Lisa…you’re the best. Don’t you love you already have something you can use?? <3
Dear Robin……………I enjoyed reading your devotion today; however, to be honest, it also made me very sad. I am a 77 year old woman living in a facility for independent living, but only because my husband has the violent type of dementia and tried to kill me in one of his dementia rages. He would not do what the doctors told him and the first thing was he absolutely had to stop drinking drinking all together. To upset me and the neurologists, he increased how much he was drinking and said there was nothing wrong with him. DENIAL, now for 6 years. Here is where I connect with your words, Robin. I know God does not like us thinking of the past, but that is where my happiness lies. We used to have large family gatherings at every what I now call “Holy Days” which I learned from one of the (in)courage devotions. After my Mother could not do Thanksgiving anymore, I told her I could do it and I would take that week off from work and spent all that time cooking and baking. I loved it. At those times I always asked to go around the table and just tell us 1 thing that we were thankful for, before we prayed and of course, ate. It was perfect. Your ideas are great, Robin. Here is why I said reading your words, it also made me very sad. We had one child from my then boyfriend date raped me and I got pregnant . I fought like the devil, but was no match for a guy who just graduated from college and was an athlete. He wanted me to get an abortion and I said NO. I wondered why a so called devoted Catholic would even suggest such a thing. So much more but fast forward. We had to get married and I had to sign a paper that the child would be brought up in the Catholic faith. I told the priest I couldn’t do that, but my husband would have to take care of that piece as I am a Protestant who now have gone to the same church for 70 years. Jim did this, but Aron (my son) did not like it. I also tried to tell him the importance of learning and building his faith over the years. This is what I did. He did not welcome this and when he went off to college he stopped going to church and never went back to it. He lived with us for 35 years until he finally found a permanent job and moved. Meanwhile, as our parents and aunts and uncles died one by one until it was just us, the next generation left and we were so heartbroken that we thought we couldn’t do those gatherings without our parents and so we lost contact with each other. I am trying to find these cousins and do something together, but the crux of this story as one night my son called me and told me I was a liar about his father and it was just old age, but he did not even come to see us for almost a year. He said he no longer considered me his mother and I could not ever see or speak to my at that time 12 year old grandson. He just then hung up on me and I have not seen or even heard from him and his wife for almost 2 years, so everything I tried to instill in him while he was living with us about faith etc. ended up for naught. When they were expecting a baby that first year, I begged him to join a church and stick with it. NO. He would not and so my grandson was not even baptized which I still cry about as that is one of the 2 covenants in our church, the other being Holy Communion. Carter has never been introduced to faith, God, Jesus and Holy Spirit etc. I know he would love it. Finally and I am sorry I have gone on so long is that where I live everyone here has relatives that will come and take them to their house for Thanksgiving so once again I will be alone. I have to go back to the past for remembering the joy and happiness those gatherings brought to me and of course, December is also a difficult season for me although by myself I celebrate the birth of Jesus. That helps me. I loved your devotion and thank you all for these daily devotions as I do not know how I could make it without all of you women. I feel I have been Blessed by God with the (in)courage women who so, so help me to keep going. Happy Thanksgiving to you, Robin and your family. I am joyful for other people who have these gatherings. I am not jealous, just sad for myself. Love to you…………………Betsy
Dear Betsy,
I hear the unending heaviness and grief in your story. I wish I could hug you. I’m so sorry for all you have suffered and continue to endure. A couple of things come to mind right now:
One, God passionately loves His daughters and it breaks His heart when they are mistreated; what happened to you is wrong and it grieves God (who will one day bring justice to all injustice). Two, Jesus was a man well-acquainted with sorrow; I pray you find comfort in knowing He prays for us in our trials from a place of intimate experience and empathy. And three, perhaps this is a season to not look back on all those family times now lost, but to look ahead to the hope, security, and future joy of heaven.
I know these words do not solve your current loneliness or turn back the hands of time on every trauma and trial. But oh how I pray that God will meet you today with His enveloping presence as you keep your gaze fixed on Him. We’re grateful you are part of the (in)courage family and family of God.
Betsy,
I read your words, and your story breaks my heart for all the ways you’ve been hurt. I didn’t know how to respond at first, and I’m so thankful Becky stepped in and expressed God’s truth and the compassion that is inherent in our community here. That incourage might be a place where you are seen, heard, believed, prayed for, and pointed to the truth of God’s word and his love for you reminds me of why we are here. You’re all those things and so much more.
Perhaps you can seek out the ones who won’t be leaving your community at Thanksgiving. (I work at a CCRC and there will be a fair number of residents who spend time with one another because their families aren’t here or are no longer here.) You’ll form your own special group, and you might be the light they desperately need to see. I’m praying for you this morning that your grief and sorry will be exchanged for thanksgiving and praise. That will be a supernatural work of the Holy Spirit, and a beautiful display of God’s power and love for you. It will mean He gives you the eyes to see his faithfulness and provision in ways it’s hard to remember. Praying for His presence now (and sending you a virtual hug this morning).
Robin,
Times when I get down I make a thankful journal. On it I list everything from Home in Heaven, salvation, Jesus to car, home, loving hubby & then minor things like paper clips, paper, etc. There are about 200+ items on the list. It changes my attitude quickly.
I do my best to treat everyone like Jesus would. Showing them love & compassion-even when they are hard to like.
Blessings 🙂
Beth :), It is the minor things you give thanks for that make me smile. It reminds me of my own family’s submissions to our Thankful Box and childlike faith <3. Yours is a practice that honors God and speaks to the power of gratitude. Thank you for sharing about your journal! It's an encouragement to "go and do likewise." 🙂 xo
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NIV REJOICE always, PRAY continually, GIVE THANKS in ALL circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.