Thanksgiving
There are few things more important to our relationship with God than giving Him thanks for being Who He is and for the incredible and innumerable blessings that He's given to each of us. Here are some thanksgiving activities for you to enjoy.
Thanksgiving Devotions
Thanksgiving - Leviticus 7:15
Praise and Thanksgiving - Psalm 95:2
Enter His Gates - Psalm 100:4
**Let All Things Now Living - Psalm 148:7
An Opposite and Equal Reaction - 1 Thessalonians 5:18
Ten Thousand Reasons
Thanksgiving Activities
Thanksgiving recipes: Bread Stuffing, Coconut Sweet Potato Bake, Butterhorns, Pumpkin Pie Deluxe
Thanksgiving Resources
Thanksgiving - Leviticus 7:15
Praise and Thanksgiving - Psalm 95:2
Enter His Gates - Psalm 100:4
**Let All Things Now Living - Psalm 148:7
An Opposite and Equal Reaction - 1 Thessalonians 5:18
Ten Thousand Reasons
Thanksgiving Activities
Thanksgiving recipes: Bread Stuffing, Coconut Sweet Potato Bake, Butterhorns, Pumpkin Pie Deluxe
Thanksgiving Resources
Thanksgiving
And the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings for thanksgiving shall be eaten on the day of his offering. He shall not leave any of it until the morning. Leviticus 7:15
Leviticus and Numbers have a lot of information about how to perform the sacrifices and offerings, but there’s not often a lot of why. Why were certain offerings killed in one place and others in another? Why was the peace offering offered on top of another sacrifice? Why could the peace offering not be eaten the following day? We’re not told why, but we can make some observations about this peace offering for thanksgiving:
1) Jesus is our peace. (Ephesians 2:14, Isaiah 9:6) I wonder if that’s why Luke 2:14 records the multitude of angels praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest and peace on earth . . .” The peace who was Jesus Christ was/is the only true peace we have! Jesus Christ is the only way to have peace with the Father - through belief in the saving power of His sacrifice and resurrection.
2) The peace offering could not remain until the next day because it would start to decay. Since Psalm 16:10 (later cited in Acts 2:27) states that God would not allow His Holy One to see corruption, this is a further indication that the peace offering indeed represents Jesus Christ. And there’s precedent for this idea of the sacrifice not remaining until the morning and the connection to Jesus: whatever remained of the Passover Lamb the next morning had to be burned (Exodus 12:10).
Perhaps this offering, like most of the other offerings and sacrifices, symbolizes what Christ does for us - for our relationship with the Father. Christ makes it possible for us to not only be reconciled to the Father, but also to have fellowship - and to be at peace - with the Father.
3) Because the peace offering could not remain until the next morning, there’s another observation we can make: each day is a new day. Each day, we need to thank God for who He is and what He’s done.
This week we’re celebrating Thanksgiving Day. That’s right and good. But we can’t give thanks to God on one day a year and call it good until Thanksgiving rolls around again next year. We’re so quick to ask for our grocery list of wants - healings and blessings. We should begin each morning with a prayer of thanksgiving to the One Who gave us everything we have and Who loves us so much He’s planning our future with Himself.
He is our peace and we need to be much more diligent to offer thanksgiving to Him that it is so.
**Praise and Thanksgiving
Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise. Psalm 95:2
Materials: crayons, superball, small assorted toys
When someone gives you a gift, what do you do? You know what you don’t do, right? You don’t turn up your nose and say yuck, unless, of course, you’re supposed to say yuck. You know, like if someone wants to give you a dirty sock or dead mouse or something. Then it’s okay to say, “Yuck. No thanks, I’m trying to quit.” But the majority of the time, the gifts that people give you are given because they like you; they want to give you something of value; they took some time and effort on your behalf. You should, at the very least, say, “Thanks.”
But let’s suppose that your parents give you a box of crayons. You say the appropriate “thank you,” but then you promptly take them and color all over the walls of your living room. Your thank you isn’t going to be very well received. Or suppose they give you a really cool bouncy ball. You say the obligatory thank you and then promptly throw the ball in the house, breaking the tv, a lamp, a mirror, and the picture window. Your parents aren’t going to feel very good about your obligatory thank you.
On the other hand, if you take the gift and you use it for good, your verbal “thank you” is very much appreciated and valued. If you take the crayons and draw a beautiful picture to give to your aunt who is ill, your parents will not only have your verbal thank you but also the evidence of your gratitude expressed in your actions. If you take the ball outside and play with your brother or sister so that your mom can get dinner ready, she’s going to appreciate not only you saying thank you, but also that you’re all benefiting from the gift.
So why would we think that God would be any different? We can go to church on Sabbath and sing praise to Him, thanking Him for all of our blessings. But our words don’t mean very much if we’re not actively using our blessings, glorifying Him through what we do with what He’s given us. Our thanksgiving means even less if we’re complaining about what we don’t have, or we’re not obeying Him and His direction in our lives. If we’re rebelling against God then just saying “thank you” is just so many words. If you really appreciate who God is and what He’s done for you, it’s going to be reflected in your songs of praise and thanksgiving . . . your conversations with others . . . in the things you do when you’re with others . . . and what you do when you’re all by yourself. Praise and thanksgiving becomes the way you live your life. Your attitude of gratitude is obvious to God and to everyone who sees you.
Enter His Gates
Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name. ~Psalm 100:4
We should come before God with thanksgiving. He is the One who has given us all things. Start listing them! You could enumerate for a very long time and not exhaust the blessings from our Great God and Savior. Selah! (Take a moment to reflect!)
Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving; make melody to our God on the lyre. ~ Psalm 147:7
A great way to express our thanksgiving to God is to sing praises to Him. There are some great hymns of praise. Go pick up your hymnal and sing one. Better yet, find a new one to learn. Get it stuck in your head and sing it under your breath all day!
You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God. ~ 2 Corinthians 9:11
The apostle Paul is telling the Corinthians here that God is the One who will give them so many blessings that their cup will be overflowing; they will want to give to others. Then as they share with Paul and the other apostles, other people will experience the goodness and blessing of God and likewise express thanksgiving to God.
It’s like giving a piece of candy to a child. What does he say? Thank you. But if you give a child a whole pile of candy, he’ll likely look around at the other people in the room and share it with them. And if he does it right, they’ll also say thank you to you. It’s the same way with the blessings from God. We get so many blessings from God that we want to share with others - and if we do it right, they will know that we’re sharing because of God’s blessings to us. They’ll also be exhorted to give thanks to God.
It’s not the normal mode of operation for our carnal nature, but it is very pleasing to our God. Take some time in the next few days to give thanks to God and to help someone else give thanks to God.
**Let All Things Now Living
Memory Verse: Praise the LORD from the earth, . . . Psalm 148:7
Bird feeders: pine-cone-bird-feeder
Materials needed: pinecones, twine, scissors, peanut butter, knife, bird seed, pie tin
7 Praise the LORD from the earth, all great sea creatures and ocean depths,
8 lightning and hail, snow and clouds, powerful wind fulfilling His word,
9 mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars,
10 wild animals and all cattle, crawling creatures and flying birds,
11 kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth,
12 young men and maidens, old and young together.
13 Let them praise the name of the LORD,
for His name alone is exalted; His splendor is above the earth and the heavens.
14 He has raised up a horn for His people, the praise of all His saints,
of Israel, a people near to Him.
Hallelujah!
We just celebrated Thanksgiving this week. So I have a couple of questions. First, to whom did you, and do you, give thanks? (Hopefully God is at the top of the list!!) Secondly, why? Why did you thank Him? (Because He deserves our thanks and praise!) There are a lot of people on Facebook this month who have posted each day what they are thankful for. What are you thankful for? Are you thankful? How do you show it? Do you say “thank you” and then just go about your business, living your life. Or does your thankfulness evident in the things that you do?
For instance, God originally created this world and put Adam and Eve in the garden to care for it. They gave a dominion mandate to Adam and Eve: not only were they to care for the plants; they were also supposed to care for the animals, tend them, manage them. So what does that mean to us? Well, during the spring, summer, and fall, there is a lot for the animals to eat (like the deer eating my garden). But in the wintertime, food is much more sparse. I think that part of demonstrating how thankful you are, for what God has provided for and to you, is paying it forward. One easy way to do that is to feed the birds. So let’s make some bird feeders - as a demonstration of our thankfulness to God.
**An Opposite and Equal Reaction
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
1 Thessalonians 5:18
Materials: rubber band, bouncy ball, green bean seeds, mirror, printed verses (James 1:17; Romans 8:32; Psalm 9:1; Psalm 95:2-3; 1 Chronicles 16:34; Psalm 100:4.
Imagine I pull a rubber band back from my index finger. What will happen when I let go? It will fly forward. If I pull harder and farther, the faster and farther the rubber band will fly when I release it. This is an example of Isaac Newton’s Third Law of Motion: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
The more gas you give the car, the faster the wheels will turn. That is, the more force is pushing against the ground. The same force pushing against the ground pushes back against the car, making it move forward.
Think about dropping a ball on the ground. The higher I am when I drop the ball, the higher it will bounce back up. The harder I bounce the ball, the higher it will bounce back up.
Newton’s Third Law of Motion is at work every day in our lives.
In thinking about opposite and equal reactions, a mirror comes to mind. When you smile into a mirror, what is reflected back at you? A smile. But what if you frown? Do you still get a smile? No. Whatever your face displays is reflected back to you in the mirror - it’s an equal face that is reflected back to you.
It’s part of the law of the harvest. If you plant green beans, what do you expect to grow? Green beans. You don’t expect to plant green beans and then find radishes sprouting up a few days later. So you get back what you plant. It’s an equal and opposite reaction. You plant green beans; green beans grow.
So stop and consider a couple of verses:
We’re getting ready to celebrate Thanksgiving Day this coming week. Why do we do that? Because God has given us so much. He’s given us His Son, life itself, the promise of eternal life with Him as his children. And we give thanks to Him because He is worthy to receive all of our praise and thanksgiving. He has given us so much!!
Think about Newton’s Third Law of Motion. God has given us so much. What’s the equal and opposite reaction? We need to give thanks to Him. As the apostle Paul wrote to the church at Thessalonica: Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
We’re choosing to nationally, collectively set aside a day to give thanks to God. But really, we should remember to give thanks to Him always!
Ten Thousand Reasons
I may have mentioned that I like to sing. O.K. I love to sing. There is rarely a time when I don’t have a song running through my head. This morning, appropriately, as I walked through the house in the early morning hours, I caught sight of the pink sky as the sun was coming up. Immediately, I started singing, “The sun comes up; it’s a new day dawning. It’s time to sing His song again.”
I was struck by the timeliness of that thought. Here it is, the day before Thanksgiving. Keith has mentioned that it’s a day of thankfulness to God; it’s an attitude of thankfulness to our Creator. Bill mentioned last week that not being thankful is the first step towards darkness, away from the light. Even JOY FM this morning was talking about having a thankful heart all the time; Thanksgiving is just the one day that we stop to reflect on what should be a reality in our hearts all the time. So the sun has come up; it’s time to sing His song again. No matter what. No matter if I’m spending the day cleaning house for tomorrow’s guests. No matter if I’m hurting from a recent injury. No matter if I’m concerned about the future. It’s time to sing His song again.
But it goes further than that. “Whatever may pass, and whatever lies before me, let me be singing when the evening comes.” Sometimes it’s easy to wake up in a good mood, especially if you’re a morning person. But the events of the day can sometimes drag you down, depress your mood, ruin your day, cause you to forget to be thankful for what you have and who you are in Jesus Christ. Instead of the cheerfulness you felt when you first saw the sunrise, you end the day grumpy over what’s gone wrong, what’s about to go wrong, or what you don’t have. I really like the line in the song: “Let me be singing when the evening comes.”
Bless the Lord, O my soul, O my soul. Worship His holy name.
Sing like never before, O my soul. I will worship His holy name.
Bill commented last week he knew someone who used to say that he was thankful that God is God. I agree! Thankfully, our God is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness (Exodus 24:6). But the reality is, if He were not good, we could do nothing about it anyway. So the top of our list of blessings is the privilege of serving an awesome God who is so good. “You’re rich in love, and You’re slow to anger. Your name is great, and Your heart is kind. For all your goodness, I will keep on singing; ten thousand reasons for my heart to find.” Not only is our God incredibly good, but the more we fellowship with Him, the deeper our intimacy with Him becomes, the more we are in awe of who He is, the more we find to adore about Him.
Bless the Lord, O my soul, O my soul. Worship His holy name.
Sing like never before, O my soul. I will worship His holy name.
Karl Marx wrote, “Religion is the opiate of the people.” Perhaps he was thinking of the verse in 1 Corinthians 15:19: “If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.” While it is true that having a relationship with God does cause people to heal from injuries faster, to endure pain and suffering more contentedly, to face adversity with a positive attitude, it is the hope that the Christian has which transcends whatever happens in this life. We know, and we know that we know, that Jesus Christ is coming back. He has prepared a place for His people where there will be no more pain or mourning, crying or death (Revelation 21:3). We have that blessed assurance that we will belong to Him forever. “And on that day when my strength is failing, the end draws near and my time has come. Still my soul will sing Your praise unending - ten thousand years and then forevermore.” For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed . . . But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:52, 57).
At the end of the day, and at the end of my life, I want to finish strong. I want to be praising my God for who He is - no matter what.
Bless the Lord, O my soul, O my soul. Worship His holy name.
Sing like never before, O my soul. I will worship His holy name.
And the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings for thanksgiving shall be eaten on the day of his offering. He shall not leave any of it until the morning. Leviticus 7:15
Leviticus and Numbers have a lot of information about how to perform the sacrifices and offerings, but there’s not often a lot of why. Why were certain offerings killed in one place and others in another? Why was the peace offering offered on top of another sacrifice? Why could the peace offering not be eaten the following day? We’re not told why, but we can make some observations about this peace offering for thanksgiving:
1) Jesus is our peace. (Ephesians 2:14, Isaiah 9:6) I wonder if that’s why Luke 2:14 records the multitude of angels praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest and peace on earth . . .” The peace who was Jesus Christ was/is the only true peace we have! Jesus Christ is the only way to have peace with the Father - through belief in the saving power of His sacrifice and resurrection.
2) The peace offering could not remain until the next day because it would start to decay. Since Psalm 16:10 (later cited in Acts 2:27) states that God would not allow His Holy One to see corruption, this is a further indication that the peace offering indeed represents Jesus Christ. And there’s precedent for this idea of the sacrifice not remaining until the morning and the connection to Jesus: whatever remained of the Passover Lamb the next morning had to be burned (Exodus 12:10).
Perhaps this offering, like most of the other offerings and sacrifices, symbolizes what Christ does for us - for our relationship with the Father. Christ makes it possible for us to not only be reconciled to the Father, but also to have fellowship - and to be at peace - with the Father.
3) Because the peace offering could not remain until the next morning, there’s another observation we can make: each day is a new day. Each day, we need to thank God for who He is and what He’s done.
This week we’re celebrating Thanksgiving Day. That’s right and good. But we can’t give thanks to God on one day a year and call it good until Thanksgiving rolls around again next year. We’re so quick to ask for our grocery list of wants - healings and blessings. We should begin each morning with a prayer of thanksgiving to the One Who gave us everything we have and Who loves us so much He’s planning our future with Himself.
He is our peace and we need to be much more diligent to offer thanksgiving to Him that it is so.
**Praise and Thanksgiving
Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise. Psalm 95:2
Materials: crayons, superball, small assorted toys
When someone gives you a gift, what do you do? You know what you don’t do, right? You don’t turn up your nose and say yuck, unless, of course, you’re supposed to say yuck. You know, like if someone wants to give you a dirty sock or dead mouse or something. Then it’s okay to say, “Yuck. No thanks, I’m trying to quit.” But the majority of the time, the gifts that people give you are given because they like you; they want to give you something of value; they took some time and effort on your behalf. You should, at the very least, say, “Thanks.”
But let’s suppose that your parents give you a box of crayons. You say the appropriate “thank you,” but then you promptly take them and color all over the walls of your living room. Your thank you isn’t going to be very well received. Or suppose they give you a really cool bouncy ball. You say the obligatory thank you and then promptly throw the ball in the house, breaking the tv, a lamp, a mirror, and the picture window. Your parents aren’t going to feel very good about your obligatory thank you.
On the other hand, if you take the gift and you use it for good, your verbal “thank you” is very much appreciated and valued. If you take the crayons and draw a beautiful picture to give to your aunt who is ill, your parents will not only have your verbal thank you but also the evidence of your gratitude expressed in your actions. If you take the ball outside and play with your brother or sister so that your mom can get dinner ready, she’s going to appreciate not only you saying thank you, but also that you’re all benefiting from the gift.
So why would we think that God would be any different? We can go to church on Sabbath and sing praise to Him, thanking Him for all of our blessings. But our words don’t mean very much if we’re not actively using our blessings, glorifying Him through what we do with what He’s given us. Our thanksgiving means even less if we’re complaining about what we don’t have, or we’re not obeying Him and His direction in our lives. If we’re rebelling against God then just saying “thank you” is just so many words. If you really appreciate who God is and what He’s done for you, it’s going to be reflected in your songs of praise and thanksgiving . . . your conversations with others . . . in the things you do when you’re with others . . . and what you do when you’re all by yourself. Praise and thanksgiving becomes the way you live your life. Your attitude of gratitude is obvious to God and to everyone who sees you.
Enter His Gates
Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name. ~Psalm 100:4
We should come before God with thanksgiving. He is the One who has given us all things. Start listing them! You could enumerate for a very long time and not exhaust the blessings from our Great God and Savior. Selah! (Take a moment to reflect!)
Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving; make melody to our God on the lyre. ~ Psalm 147:7
A great way to express our thanksgiving to God is to sing praises to Him. There are some great hymns of praise. Go pick up your hymnal and sing one. Better yet, find a new one to learn. Get it stuck in your head and sing it under your breath all day!
You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God. ~ 2 Corinthians 9:11
The apostle Paul is telling the Corinthians here that God is the One who will give them so many blessings that their cup will be overflowing; they will want to give to others. Then as they share with Paul and the other apostles, other people will experience the goodness and blessing of God and likewise express thanksgiving to God.
It’s like giving a piece of candy to a child. What does he say? Thank you. But if you give a child a whole pile of candy, he’ll likely look around at the other people in the room and share it with them. And if he does it right, they’ll also say thank you to you. It’s the same way with the blessings from God. We get so many blessings from God that we want to share with others - and if we do it right, they will know that we’re sharing because of God’s blessings to us. They’ll also be exhorted to give thanks to God.
It’s not the normal mode of operation for our carnal nature, but it is very pleasing to our God. Take some time in the next few days to give thanks to God and to help someone else give thanks to God.
**Let All Things Now Living
Memory Verse: Praise the LORD from the earth, . . . Psalm 148:7
Bird feeders: pine-cone-bird-feeder
Materials needed: pinecones, twine, scissors, peanut butter, knife, bird seed, pie tin
7 Praise the LORD from the earth, all great sea creatures and ocean depths,
8 lightning and hail, snow and clouds, powerful wind fulfilling His word,
9 mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars,
10 wild animals and all cattle, crawling creatures and flying birds,
11 kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth,
12 young men and maidens, old and young together.
13 Let them praise the name of the LORD,
for His name alone is exalted; His splendor is above the earth and the heavens.
14 He has raised up a horn for His people, the praise of all His saints,
of Israel, a people near to Him.
Hallelujah!
We just celebrated Thanksgiving this week. So I have a couple of questions. First, to whom did you, and do you, give thanks? (Hopefully God is at the top of the list!!) Secondly, why? Why did you thank Him? (Because He deserves our thanks and praise!) There are a lot of people on Facebook this month who have posted each day what they are thankful for. What are you thankful for? Are you thankful? How do you show it? Do you say “thank you” and then just go about your business, living your life. Or does your thankfulness evident in the things that you do?
For instance, God originally created this world and put Adam and Eve in the garden to care for it. They gave a dominion mandate to Adam and Eve: not only were they to care for the plants; they were also supposed to care for the animals, tend them, manage them. So what does that mean to us? Well, during the spring, summer, and fall, there is a lot for the animals to eat (like the deer eating my garden). But in the wintertime, food is much more sparse. I think that part of demonstrating how thankful you are, for what God has provided for and to you, is paying it forward. One easy way to do that is to feed the birds. So let’s make some bird feeders - as a demonstration of our thankfulness to God.
**An Opposite and Equal Reaction
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
1 Thessalonians 5:18
Materials: rubber band, bouncy ball, green bean seeds, mirror, printed verses (James 1:17; Romans 8:32; Psalm 9:1; Psalm 95:2-3; 1 Chronicles 16:34; Psalm 100:4.
Imagine I pull a rubber band back from my index finger. What will happen when I let go? It will fly forward. If I pull harder and farther, the faster and farther the rubber band will fly when I release it. This is an example of Isaac Newton’s Third Law of Motion: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
The more gas you give the car, the faster the wheels will turn. That is, the more force is pushing against the ground. The same force pushing against the ground pushes back against the car, making it move forward.
Think about dropping a ball on the ground. The higher I am when I drop the ball, the higher it will bounce back up. The harder I bounce the ball, the higher it will bounce back up.
Newton’s Third Law of Motion is at work every day in our lives.
In thinking about opposite and equal reactions, a mirror comes to mind. When you smile into a mirror, what is reflected back at you? A smile. But what if you frown? Do you still get a smile? No. Whatever your face displays is reflected back to you in the mirror - it’s an equal face that is reflected back to you.
It’s part of the law of the harvest. If you plant green beans, what do you expect to grow? Green beans. You don’t expect to plant green beans and then find radishes sprouting up a few days later. So you get back what you plant. It’s an equal and opposite reaction. You plant green beans; green beans grow.
So stop and consider a couple of verses:
- Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. James 1:17
- He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Romans 8:32
- I will give thanks to you, LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds. Psalm 9:1
- Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song. For the LORD is the great God, the great King above all gods. Psalm 95:2-3
- Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. 1 Chronicles 16:34
- Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. Psalm 100:4
We’re getting ready to celebrate Thanksgiving Day this coming week. Why do we do that? Because God has given us so much. He’s given us His Son, life itself, the promise of eternal life with Him as his children. And we give thanks to Him because He is worthy to receive all of our praise and thanksgiving. He has given us so much!!
Think about Newton’s Third Law of Motion. God has given us so much. What’s the equal and opposite reaction? We need to give thanks to Him. As the apostle Paul wrote to the church at Thessalonica: Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
We’re choosing to nationally, collectively set aside a day to give thanks to God. But really, we should remember to give thanks to Him always!
Ten Thousand Reasons
I may have mentioned that I like to sing. O.K. I love to sing. There is rarely a time when I don’t have a song running through my head. This morning, appropriately, as I walked through the house in the early morning hours, I caught sight of the pink sky as the sun was coming up. Immediately, I started singing, “The sun comes up; it’s a new day dawning. It’s time to sing His song again.”
I was struck by the timeliness of that thought. Here it is, the day before Thanksgiving. Keith has mentioned that it’s a day of thankfulness to God; it’s an attitude of thankfulness to our Creator. Bill mentioned last week that not being thankful is the first step towards darkness, away from the light. Even JOY FM this morning was talking about having a thankful heart all the time; Thanksgiving is just the one day that we stop to reflect on what should be a reality in our hearts all the time. So the sun has come up; it’s time to sing His song again. No matter what. No matter if I’m spending the day cleaning house for tomorrow’s guests. No matter if I’m hurting from a recent injury. No matter if I’m concerned about the future. It’s time to sing His song again.
But it goes further than that. “Whatever may pass, and whatever lies before me, let me be singing when the evening comes.” Sometimes it’s easy to wake up in a good mood, especially if you’re a morning person. But the events of the day can sometimes drag you down, depress your mood, ruin your day, cause you to forget to be thankful for what you have and who you are in Jesus Christ. Instead of the cheerfulness you felt when you first saw the sunrise, you end the day grumpy over what’s gone wrong, what’s about to go wrong, or what you don’t have. I really like the line in the song: “Let me be singing when the evening comes.”
Bless the Lord, O my soul, O my soul. Worship His holy name.
Sing like never before, O my soul. I will worship His holy name.
Bill commented last week he knew someone who used to say that he was thankful that God is God. I agree! Thankfully, our God is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness (Exodus 24:6). But the reality is, if He were not good, we could do nothing about it anyway. So the top of our list of blessings is the privilege of serving an awesome God who is so good. “You’re rich in love, and You’re slow to anger. Your name is great, and Your heart is kind. For all your goodness, I will keep on singing; ten thousand reasons for my heart to find.” Not only is our God incredibly good, but the more we fellowship with Him, the deeper our intimacy with Him becomes, the more we are in awe of who He is, the more we find to adore about Him.
Bless the Lord, O my soul, O my soul. Worship His holy name.
Sing like never before, O my soul. I will worship His holy name.
Karl Marx wrote, “Religion is the opiate of the people.” Perhaps he was thinking of the verse in 1 Corinthians 15:19: “If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.” While it is true that having a relationship with God does cause people to heal from injuries faster, to endure pain and suffering more contentedly, to face adversity with a positive attitude, it is the hope that the Christian has which transcends whatever happens in this life. We know, and we know that we know, that Jesus Christ is coming back. He has prepared a place for His people where there will be no more pain or mourning, crying or death (Revelation 21:3). We have that blessed assurance that we will belong to Him forever. “And on that day when my strength is failing, the end draws near and my time has come. Still my soul will sing Your praise unending - ten thousand years and then forevermore.” For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed . . . But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:52, 57).
At the end of the day, and at the end of my life, I want to finish strong. I want to be praising my God for who He is - no matter what.
Bless the Lord, O my soul, O my soul. Worship His holy name.
Sing like never before, O my soul. I will worship His holy name.
Thanksgiving Activities
Make a lapbook: From some of the sites below, find items to put into the lapbook. This can include:
*An essay based on the Biblical mandate in Deuteronomy 8 not to forget God when we are prospering.
*Verses which talk about being thankful. Write the verses out or give the scripture references.
*Find a picture of a turkey (State conservation magazines are good places to look.), cut it out, glue it on one of the pages of the lapbook along with turkey facts, when the turkey first became associated with Thanksgiving, and which founding father wanted the turkey to be our national symbol.
*Make as many words as possible from "Thanksgiving Day."
*Using pictures from magazines, old calendars, etc., make a collage of the things you are most thankful for.
*Make a wordle of Thanksgiving terms. (A wordle is a collage of words.)
*Make a list of the things you thank God for.
*Print a copy of 1) The Mayflower Compact, 2) William Bradford's Thanksgiving Proclamation of November 29, 1623, 3) George Washington's Thanksgiving Proclamation of 1789. Fasten into the lapbook.
*Research facts like:
What's the difference between sweet potatoes and yams?
How does a turkey timer work?
When was the first turkey pardoned by the President of the United States?
Which President made Thanksgiving Day an annual holiday on the fourth Thursday in November?
Bingo: Play Bingo with the things you are most thankful for.
Sing: Find a hymnbook and sing.
"Come, Ye Thankful People, Come"
"Give Thanks"
"We Plough the Fields and Gather"
"Count Your Blessings"
"For the Beauty of the Earth"
"Now Thank We All Our God"
"We Are So Blessed"
Paper Flower Bouquet: Make 3-D flowers out of paper. Attach them to pipe cleaners. Write one thing you are thankful for on each petal. Place in a vase and use as the centerpiece on the Thanksgiving table.
Make a lapbook: From some of the sites below, find items to put into the lapbook. This can include:
*An essay based on the Biblical mandate in Deuteronomy 8 not to forget God when we are prospering.
*Verses which talk about being thankful. Write the verses out or give the scripture references.
*Find a picture of a turkey (State conservation magazines are good places to look.), cut it out, glue it on one of the pages of the lapbook along with turkey facts, when the turkey first became associated with Thanksgiving, and which founding father wanted the turkey to be our national symbol.
*Make as many words as possible from "Thanksgiving Day."
*Using pictures from magazines, old calendars, etc., make a collage of the things you are most thankful for.
*Make a wordle of Thanksgiving terms. (A wordle is a collage of words.)
*Make a list of the things you thank God for.
*Print a copy of 1) The Mayflower Compact, 2) William Bradford's Thanksgiving Proclamation of November 29, 1623, 3) George Washington's Thanksgiving Proclamation of 1789. Fasten into the lapbook.
*Research facts like:
What's the difference between sweet potatoes and yams?
How does a turkey timer work?
When was the first turkey pardoned by the President of the United States?
Which President made Thanksgiving Day an annual holiday on the fourth Thursday in November?
Bingo: Play Bingo with the things you are most thankful for.
Sing: Find a hymnbook and sing.
"Come, Ye Thankful People, Come"
"Give Thanks"
"We Plough the Fields and Gather"
"Count Your Blessings"
"For the Beauty of the Earth"
"Now Thank We All Our God"
"We Are So Blessed"
Paper Flower Bouquet: Make 3-D flowers out of paper. Attach them to pipe cleaners. Write one thing you are thankful for on each petal. Place in a vase and use as the centerpiece on the Thanksgiving table.
Thanksgiving Resources
Plimoth Plantation
http://www.homeschoollibrary.info/2014/11/25/thanksgiving-resources-from-plimoth-plantation/
HomeschoolPatriot.com
Homeschool Library of Links - Thanksgiving Story
http://www.homeschoollibrary.info/2014/11/20/the-thanksgiving-story-free-ebook-2/
48 pages of Thanksgiving resources including:
-The Pilgrims' Thanksgiving
-The Mayflower Compact
-The First Ever National Thanksgiving Proclamation, 1777
-Continental Congress Thanksgiving Proclamation, 1782
-Washington's Thanksgiving Proclamation, 1789
-Lincoln's Thanksgiving Proclamation, 1863
-The First Thanksgiving (from "Stories of the Pilgrims")
-Pilgrim Timeline
-Pilgrim Trivia
-Thanksgiving Links
-Thanksgiving Poems & Prayers
-Thanksgiving Quotations
-Thanksgiving Scriptures
-Thanksgiving Picture Study
-Thanksgiving Worksheets
-Thanksgiving Activities
-and much more!!!
Homeschool Library of Links - Thanksgiving Movies
http://www.homeschoollibrary.info/2014/11/24/thanksgiving-movies/
The Teaching Home Newsletter - Thanksgiving activities
http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs158/1101229843312/archive/1119229716629.html
Thanksgiving Crafts
Plimoth Plantation
http://www.homeschoollibrary.info/2014/11/25/thanksgiving-resources-from-plimoth-plantation/
HomeschoolPatriot.com
Homeschool Library of Links - Thanksgiving Story
http://www.homeschoollibrary.info/2014/11/20/the-thanksgiving-story-free-ebook-2/
48 pages of Thanksgiving resources including:
-The Pilgrims' Thanksgiving
-The Mayflower Compact
-The First Ever National Thanksgiving Proclamation, 1777
-Continental Congress Thanksgiving Proclamation, 1782
-Washington's Thanksgiving Proclamation, 1789
-Lincoln's Thanksgiving Proclamation, 1863
-The First Thanksgiving (from "Stories of the Pilgrims")
-Pilgrim Timeline
-Pilgrim Trivia
-Thanksgiving Links
-Thanksgiving Poems & Prayers
-Thanksgiving Quotations
-Thanksgiving Scriptures
-Thanksgiving Picture Study
-Thanksgiving Worksheets
-Thanksgiving Activities
-and much more!!!
Homeschool Library of Links - Thanksgiving Movies
http://www.homeschoollibrary.info/2014/11/24/thanksgiving-movies/
The Teaching Home Newsletter - Thanksgiving activities
http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs158/1101229843312/archive/1119229716629.html
Thanksgiving Crafts
- Paper Plate Turkey Craft for Preschoolers in November
- EASY Turkey Toilet Paper Roll Craft
- Paper Plate Turkey Craft with Lovely Feathers
- EASY Marble-Painted Turkey Craft Ideas for Kids
- Turkey Slime Activities for Preschoolers
- Corn-Painted Name Turkey Craft for Kindergarten
- Paint Swatch Toilet Paper Roll Turkey Craft for Thanksgiving
- Coffee Filter Turkey Crafts for Preschoolers
- EASY Bubble Wrap Turkey Craft for Kids
- CUTE Thanksgiving Construction Paper Turkey Craft
- FREE Printable "I am Thankful" Turkey Paper Craft
- Simple Construction Paper Turkey Craft for November
- These adorable Turkey Hat Template are fun to make and wear in November
- Make these adorable Turkey Cup Holders to decorate your Thanksgiving table!
- Painted Pine Cone Turkey Craft
- Simple-to-Make Torn Paper Turkey Craft for Preschoolers
- Easy Platic Cup Turkey Craft
- Feathered Paper Plate Turkey Craft
- Thanksful Turkey Hand Art
- Pumpkin Seed Turkey Crafts for Preschool
- Packing Peanut Turkey Craft
- 35 Clever Turkey Craft Ideas
- EASY Pasta Turkey Craft
- Edible Turkey Craft for Kids
Thanksgiving recipes
Bread Stuffing
1 1/2 c. finely chopped onion
1 1/2 c. finely chopped celery
1/2 c. butter
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning
1 tsp. sage
pepper
8 c. dry unseasoned bread cubes
1/4 c. water or broth (more broth if not stuffing turkey)
Cook celery and onion in butter. Mix seasonings and sprinkle over bread cubes. Add broth to celery and onions. Then mix all together.
Enough for 12 lb. turkey.
If not stuffing turkey, cook for about 45 minutes in covered dish.
Coconut Sweet Potato Bake
2 cans (1 lb 1 oz each) cut sweet potatoes, drained
4 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. milk
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
3/4 c. flaked coconut
1/2 tsp. vanilla
Marshmallow cream
Put sweet potatoes in 13 x 9 baking dish. In saucepan over medium heat, combine butter, sugar, milk, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Cook and stir until butter is melted and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat; stir in coconut and vanilla. Pour over sweet potatoes.
Cover and bake at 350º for 45 minutes. Uncover. Drizzle with marshmallow cream. Bake 5 - 10 minutes longer.
Yield: about 12 1/2 c. servings
Butterhorns
2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast
1/3 cup warm water (110° to 115°)
2 cups warm 2% milk (110° to 115°)
1 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
6 eggs
2 teaspoon salt
9 cups all-purpose flour, divided
3 to 4 tablespoons butter, melted
In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Add milk, shortening, sugar, eggs, salt and 4 cups flour; beat 3 minutes or until smooth. Add enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.
Turn onto a floured surface; knead lightly. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 2 hours.
Punch dough down; divide into four equal parts. Roll each into a 9-in. circle; brush with butter. Cut each circle into eight pie-shaped wedges; roll up each wedge from wide edge to tip of dough and pinch to seal.
Place rolls with tip down on baking sheets; freeze. When frozen, place in freezer bags and seal. Store in freezer for up to 4 weeks.
Place on greased baking sheets; thaw 5 hours or until doubled in size. Preheat oven to 375°. Bake 12-15 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from baking sheets; serve warm, or cool on wire rack. Yield: 32 rolls.
Pumpkin Pie Deluxe
2 - 9” baked single pie crusts
1 8-oz pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 14-oz can condensed milk
2 c. pumpkin
3/4 c. sugar (scant)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. allspice
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. walnuts (chopped)
Bake crust for 15 minutes at 450º. While crust is baking, beat cheese until fluffy. Beat in rest of ingredients until smooth, saving some nuts. Pour over prepared crust, sprinkle remaining nuts on top. Bake 30-35 minutes at 350º or until set. Cool to room temperature. Store in refrigerator.
Bread Stuffing
1 1/2 c. finely chopped onion
1 1/2 c. finely chopped celery
1/2 c. butter
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning
1 tsp. sage
pepper
8 c. dry unseasoned bread cubes
1/4 c. water or broth (more broth if not stuffing turkey)
Cook celery and onion in butter. Mix seasonings and sprinkle over bread cubes. Add broth to celery and onions. Then mix all together.
Enough for 12 lb. turkey.
If not stuffing turkey, cook for about 45 minutes in covered dish.
Coconut Sweet Potato Bake
2 cans (1 lb 1 oz each) cut sweet potatoes, drained
4 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. milk
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
3/4 c. flaked coconut
1/2 tsp. vanilla
Marshmallow cream
Put sweet potatoes in 13 x 9 baking dish. In saucepan over medium heat, combine butter, sugar, milk, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Cook and stir until butter is melted and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat; stir in coconut and vanilla. Pour over sweet potatoes.
Cover and bake at 350º for 45 minutes. Uncover. Drizzle with marshmallow cream. Bake 5 - 10 minutes longer.
Yield: about 12 1/2 c. servings
Butterhorns
2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast
1/3 cup warm water (110° to 115°)
2 cups warm 2% milk (110° to 115°)
1 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
6 eggs
2 teaspoon salt
9 cups all-purpose flour, divided
3 to 4 tablespoons butter, melted
In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Add milk, shortening, sugar, eggs, salt and 4 cups flour; beat 3 minutes or until smooth. Add enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.
Turn onto a floured surface; knead lightly. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 2 hours.
Punch dough down; divide into four equal parts. Roll each into a 9-in. circle; brush with butter. Cut each circle into eight pie-shaped wedges; roll up each wedge from wide edge to tip of dough and pinch to seal.
Place rolls with tip down on baking sheets; freeze. When frozen, place in freezer bags and seal. Store in freezer for up to 4 weeks.
Place on greased baking sheets; thaw 5 hours or until doubled in size. Preheat oven to 375°. Bake 12-15 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from baking sheets; serve warm, or cool on wire rack. Yield: 32 rolls.
Pumpkin Pie Deluxe
2 - 9” baked single pie crusts
1 8-oz pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 14-oz can condensed milk
2 c. pumpkin
3/4 c. sugar (scant)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. allspice
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. walnuts (chopped)
Bake crust for 15 minutes at 450º. While crust is baking, beat cheese until fluffy. Beat in rest of ingredients until smooth, saving some nuts. Pour over prepared crust, sprinkle remaining nuts on top. Bake 30-35 minutes at 350º or until set. Cool to room temperature. Store in refrigerator.