Thanksgiving Season

This resembles the Thanksgiving Tree we first did years ago, but every year since we've cut out Maple tree leaves instead.

Last Thanksgiving season, all of my homeschool friends made fun of me because I told them that we had chosen to eat pizza for Thanksgiving Dinner. I recently shared with a friend that my favorite holiday is Thanksgiving and she laughed and said, "But you don't even celebrate Thanksgiving." I think it is so funny that people think we don't celebrate because we choose not to eat turkey! For me, Thanksgiving has nothing to do with food.

Sadly, a homeschool mom whom I had only known very briefly actually tried to correct me rather sternly by asking me, "What do you think you are teaching your children?" At first I thought she was joking but it became apparent that she wasn't. What I am teaching my children is that Thanksgiving has nothing to do with turkey and the traditions of men, but is ALL about a truly grateful heart willing to shout praises to Jesus, who is our Savior, Father, Friend, and Provider! I told her this, and despite being a true Christian herself, she was stuck on the "tradition," part.

For some folks Thanksgiving is a historical tradition to follow and nothing more. As a child, this is what my family did. My mother cooked a feast and we ate leftovers for days. It was that simple. Then as a young married, a new world was opened to me through my husband and his very large Italian family. Turkey? Sometimes...but not always. Lasagna! Yes, always...it was the main dish, and I looked forward to it each year. The whole hustle and bustle of a large family was a fun experience. However, my very favorite pre-Christ Thanksgivings were spent with my husband's mother's side of the family. Why? Because family was a value and when you walked into their home you were loved. I also enjoyed how they blessed the meal...and seemed truly thankful to God. But one by one, the elders of both sides of the family passed on or traditions changed and the Thanksgiving gatherings dwindled. My in-laws began the tradition of going out to dinner on Thanksgiving and it was a lovely treat...but very stressful with little children in tow.

Then about eleven years ago my husband and I, teetering on the edge of divorce and hitting rock bottom within ourselves, began to seek God.

"When You said, 'Seek My face,' my heart said to You,

'Your face, O Lord, I shall seek." ~Psalm 27:8

We both trusted Christ that year and we began a completely new life together. For the first time in my life I was truly "from my heart," grateful, thankful, and full of God's goodness. As a part of our new life, God gave us freedom to begin our own tradition based on His goodness. Grace is wonderful that way! Thanksgiving is not about food. It is about heart.

One October two years ago, I asked the children what they wanted to do for Thanksgiving. What did they most want? That first year they asked for our usual Christ centered Thanksgiving Tree, the parade, one child wanted football, and all wanted pizza for dinner. Thanksgiving was precious that year, very relaxing and enjoyable for all!

This is not my lasagna. I found this picture online. But it looks good doesn't it?

Last year, my family originally wanted pizza...but changed their minds shortly before Thanksgiving. We decided it would be nice to try to make the old family recipe for lasagna. My husband is a fourth generation Sicilian Italian American, so we're talking "real," lasagna. The recipe turned out nearly perfect (despite me being a melting pot American) and once again, we had a relaxing, very nice day at home.

Thanksgiving Day is a day set apart to offer thanks and praise to God for His care and provision for our family. We usually begin the Thanksgiving season in October. We build a construction paper tree and hang it in our living room. Every day we each add a leaf to the tree with a handwritten note of thanks to God for some special blessing He has bestowed upon us. It is a precious time of year for me. Thanksgiving was once "tradition," and was devoid of God and thus empty and dissatisfying, but God has redeemed those years, and has filled me with an abundance of gratitude for every measure of grace He gives.

This year, we are further developing the idea of the Thanksgiving Tree. In a nutshell the tree is hard to keep as a memorial being very large and bulky. Having need to be folded at the end of a season, the leaves tend to fall off, etc... Today it occurred to me that I have a Creative Memories Album that is empty. With nice clean acid free paper inside, I thought perhaps we ought to keep a Thanksgiving Scrapbook/Journal. Perhaps we'll secure our leaves into this book once the season is done to keep as our memorial to the one, true, mighty man who is our God, Jesus Christ.

"That I may proclaim with a voice of thanksgiving and declare of all Your wonders." Psalm 26:7

Thanks be to Him for all that is my life. To learn you, Jesus, is my greatest blessing...but to do so with the love and affection of my husband and children makes my cup run over. You are an awesome God!

Grateful for His Grace,