Overflowing with Thankfulness

"Rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, overflowing with thankfulness. Colossians 2:7



November and the beginning of the Holiday season makes me sentimental about families and God's faithfulness to all the generations. When we gather together to celebrate Thanksgiving and look forward to Christmas, memories of our families and loved ones abound. The tree in the picture and the verse also remind of our "family trees". I was visiting my Mom's house a few weeks ago, and she gave me copies of letters written by my great, great, great and 2 great grandfathers during the Civil War. The father was writing to his son (he had three sons who fought for the Union side in Missouri) and urged him to keep close to God, pray and take encouragement from Scriptures. After the war, two of the sons, including my gg grandfather became ministers.
I was so touched and grateful that my roots go back to believers who prayed for their generations to come--including me!
It's nice to know my roots go back to family members who were rooted in Him---and taught me to grow stronger in my faith.
Every family has traditions and a legacy--and you're making your family's right now!! You are the one who can build a legacy of faith, of roots and being built up in God, and praying for your family members to come...they will be blessed!

Be Ye Thankful
Aren't there days when you are absolutely "overflowing with thankfulness?" I have days like that...the beauty of fall, a loved one's call, good news, feeling at peace with God and others all make it easy for me to be grateful. God more than supplies all my needs.
This month, really try to focus on all the things God has done for us. Try this with yourself or your family.
When you first wake up, tell God thank you for a new day. (This one's from my Mom who is 89!)
Tell 5 people "thank you" during each day--do this as a family, and talk about the results.
Write "Thank You" notes to 2 or 3 people each week. (Stress this to your children--we need to thank others when they go out of their way for us)
Make a leafless tree on poster board and have family members and guests write something they're thankful on construction paper leaves to put on the tree
Each evening at supper have each person tell 3 or 5 things they're thankful for--keep a "Thankfulness Journal". Write down each person's responses, and continue this each evening with no repeats !
Preparing your heart and home for Thanksgiving
When you think of the coming holidays, what is your default mode? Are you excited and happy, or anxious and stressed?
I am some of each. Gathering together is a time to make memories, share the love and warmth of family and friends, but it's also a time full of extra work and tasks, more activities to juggle and unrealistic expectations.
If we're going to enjoy Thanksgiving and our families, we need to start with welcoming hearts.
1. Check your heart attitude--if you're practicing hospitality with a grateful heart, everything else will fall in place.
What is our motivation when we have others to our homes? Are we making memories and sharing loving times or are we trying to impress others? Too often, I get too involved in trying to make things go smoothly and be 'just right' which leaves me grumpy and tired. (I had a typo here and it said "fried" which is also true--I do feel fried during the holidays sometimes!) It's hard to balance wanting things nice for your guests with knowing when to quit so you're not frazzled! (or fried!) This brings us to point 2.

2. Strive for imperfection!! Embrace it and changes in plans, culinary mishaps, flu bugs and bad weather! Many, many years of holidays with kids has taught me that if anything can go wrong, it will. Try to make the best of it and keep being thankful! My friend Kim writes the lovelybranchesministries.org "Food For Thought" column which is quite good and highly recommended. But I read an article once from another source that certainly gave me a different taste of hospitality. The author said that she was so stressed by entertaining that she would never have people over until she went to an acquaintance's home for a meal. Her hostess had her come to the kitchen to help finish the simple dinner, the house was pleasantly cluttered, and things were pretty casual. Her hostess explained that she would rather focus on people and making them welcome--and the best way to do that was to keep things simple and to not try to impress anyone. This was contrary to what most of us think when entertaining, but the lady in the story agreed that she enjoyed the evening and felt no pressure when inviting this hostess over!
The most important thing when entertaining is not to have a perfect home, or meal (thank goodness!), but to have a welcoming heart. Your guests and family would rather you delight in them by being with them than spend your time trying to create the "perfect Thanksgiving".

3. Plan Ahead--keeping in mind that plans change. Pull out your "go to" recipes, plan your menus, stock your shelves and bake/freeze what you can ahead of time. Buy snack food items and keep on a special shelf for surprise guests, freeze some chili or have pizzas in the freezer, chips or crackers and dip and you can make a party in a hurry!
For Thanksgiving, decide what to have (gasp--it doesn't have to be turkey!"), and if the crowd is headed to your house, then cook ahead, set the table ahead, get your crock pots to keep mashed potatoes, turkey and gray hot, etc. Planning and making lists now does help you not to be quite so flustered when everyone is coming.
Figure out where everyone will sit for the meal, find serving platters and dishes, and ready your home.
A Beverage Bar is fun--set up hot coca mix, marshmallows, mugs, hot cider in a crock pot, and coffee with flavored creamers in an area for guests to help themselves. Be sure to keep hot water, cider and coffee containers away from small children.
4. Prepare your home for the holidays
When having guests, the things you really need are: a clean bathroom (check the toilet paper supply!), a clean guest room, space in the refrigerator, a "picked up" living room or dining room. Get the troops involved--everyone can vacuum, dust and pick up. If that fails, you can resort to my Dad's "company's coming" cleaning method--take some trash bags and load up all the farm publications and newspapers you haven't had time to read and put them in the bags and stash them in the trunk of your car! (This probably explains why my car looks like it does--I call it my traveling closet) If you feel really ambitious, go after cobwebs and clean the windows one last time before winter. Keeping the lights low and using candles gives a warm welcome and hides dust!
Fall decorations are nice--go out and get some tree branches, put in a rustic container, add leaves or nuts on the table, or do a Horn of Plenty with pumpkins, gourds and Indian corn. Simmer some cinnamon sticks and orange or apple peels on the store for a nice smell.

5. Make some Memories--plan some fun activities.
When the clan gathers, have some activities to bring togetherness --you can keep old traditions or start new ones!
At the Thanksgiving meal, people can list their blessings on a Thankfulness mural, or on index cards to read at the table.
Mix It Up--Place cards at tables can help generations mingle, and then switch again for desert so people can visit with different people.
Play games-flag football and taking post meal walks is our family tradition, but you can also: sing around the piano, watch movies together with plenty of pillows and blankets, play board games or charades.
Look at pictures of past holidays together, make cookies, have a fire and roast hot dogs. Make a cardboard box Mayflower and let your little Pilgrims set sail. Build some tepees in the back yard and have the Native Americans help the Pilgrims as in the first Thanksgiving.

6. Remember why we're thankful--read or tell the story of the first Thanksgiving!
One of my favorite ways to explain the Pilgrim/Thanksgiving story is CLASH DAY. Dress in terrible loud, bright clothes that don't go together, like plaids and stripes, etc. Hopefully your family will notice and question you (and your fashion sense). I do this with my AWANA kids. I explain that the Pilgrims, because of their beliefs in God and wanting to worship Him their way, stood out and clashed with the rest of the people in England. They came to America to have the freedom to worship God their way and pass their faith down to their children. (Roots and growing strong in faith again). Their faith kept them going when the voyage was perilous and they were sick and starving the first winter.
I like to use these verses from the Bible:
"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--His good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2
You are the world's seasoning (salt) to make it tolerable. If you lose your flavor, what will happen to the world? Matthew 5:13
As God's people, the Pilgrims tried to flavor their world with His word and ways--we're called to do the same in our world.
Make a mixture of "seasoned salt" with sea salt and your favorite herbs, then sprinkle over pop corn and enjoy.

Have some pumpkin or pecan pie (or both), sing "Count Your Many Blessings", and most of all, look hard at all your loved ones and thank God for each--give them a hug, a kiss, and tell them you're thankful for them.
Remember to "Praise the Lord. Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever." Psalm 106;16