How to Make Thanksgiving Christ-Focused

One thing I love about the whole month of November is the attitude of gratitude. My social media feed floods with people posting about what they’re most thankful for this past year. It’s such a beautiful change of pace from what my feed is normally filled with. With all this gratitude surrounding Thanksgiving, I wanted to encourage my fellow Christian mamas to go the extra mile to make the season of gratitude extra special by pointing others to Christ.

I put together a quick list of things we can do to turn our family and those around us toward the Savior this season, giving all the glory to Him.

1. Scripture Placecard – if you’re a placecard person, instead of just putting the person’s name, add a verse underneath. What I love most about this idea is that people are curious by nature. If they’re not familar with the verse, they’re going to be inclined to ask about it or look it up. Talk about opening up the conversation and letting the Spirit work through you.
   
   I would also encourage you, as the host, to pray about each guest and ask God to guide you to a verse. This is a great way to let God reach someone and makes for incredible conversation. Imagine looking your loved one in the eye telling them that this is the verse God had in mind for them. Just a WOW moment.
   
   I did a quick search on Etsy for you so you don’t have to go hunting some down.
   
   Verse: Mark 16:15
   
2. Pray – I feel like this goes without saying. Before dining open with a prayer. I grew up in a secular home and dinner for us always began with us singing Happy Birthday to the turkey. When I was little, I thought it must be the turkey’s birthday because of the celebration so I insisted we sing to it. While that was super cute and funny now, I’d much rather have the tradition of prayer. For whatever reason, I feel that this prayer needs to be a little deeper than the “typical” dinner time prayer.
   
   Verse: Philippians 4:4-7
   
3. Serve the Community – I will totally be discussing this more when we get to the Christmas season but this is an excellent way to glorify God. If you’ve been blessed and have an abundance of gratitude for the One who gave it all to you, go out and share that goodness.
   
   Get out and serve at your local foodbank or soup kitchen.
   Rake a neighbor’s leaves (but do let them know you’re there and why first so they don’t think you’re the new neighborhood crazy person)
   Offer to help a young mama or an elderly couple with household chores
   Offer a free babysitting night to a couple who could use it
   
   There are ample service opporunities year round but especially during the holiday season.
   
   Verse: Matthew 5:16
   
4. Kids Activties – Print off some coloring sheets focused on Christ this Thanksgiving that can keep the kiddos entertained. We all know how challenging it can be to finish in the kitchen with littles under foot. Set up some crayons and coloring sheets and let the kids know that you’ll hang up their pictures if they can finish them up before dinner. They’ll stay focused on completing the task, you get some peace in the kitchen and the kids get a little more exposure to the Gospel. It’s a win for everyone! Plus, you get the added bonus of displaying the pictures so everyone at your table gets that biblical exposure as well.
   
   Verse: Isaiah 54:13
   
5. Invite someone over (not family) – Maybe there’s a single with no family close by in your church. Maybe there’s a soldier away from home and doesn’t have the leave to go home. Invite someone over that is not related to your Thanksgiving dinner. This is a great way to get to know someone new and pour into them.
   
   Verse: Galatians 5:13
   
6. . Discuss the History of Thanksgiving – Thanksgiving is rich with Christian history. The Pilgrims were seeking religious freedom making it the perfect holiday to discuss God’s plans, His hand in our lives and more. I love the history breakdown from Got Questions in case you did not want to do a little research 🙂 Christian Books also has some really great books listed on their site if you’re into reading a story to the littles. This is a super simple way to remind everyone that Thanksgiving was always Christ-focused.
   
   Verse: Proverbs 22:6

Tell me in the comments how you and your family will be spending this Thanksgiving holiday. What are some of your family traditions?