Thanksgiving devotional idea:
One morning this week, I took a glass, set it in a bowl, and started pouring milk into the cup until it overflowed and started filling the bowl. My children watched me with mingled awe and horror, thinking I was both brilliant and crazy at the same time. We read Colossians 2:7: “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, . . . overflowing with thankfulness.” We talked about how we want to be a family that has so much gratitude, it spills out everywhere, and we discussed ideas for how we can express thanks to God and to other people. It was a fun, simple devotional that took about five minutes . . . and as an added bonus, it tricked my kids into drinking extra milk, because afterwards, I stuck straws in the bowl and they all shared their germs and—well, they started out drinking the milk, but ended up blowing lots of milk bubbles. (Because what better use could a kid find for a bowl full of milk and a straw?!)
Another devotional idea about gratitude—for kids AND grown-ups:
Credit for this one goes to my husband! Our small group at church got together the other night for a devotional about gratitude. (It was a room full of adults and kids, including my very loud almost-two-year-old, who had a LOT to say all throughout the devotional!) We started by reading some scriptures about gratitude, then Kevin handed out notecards and pens. He asked us to write down things we were grateful for in different categories—an activity we enjoy, an experience we’ve had, something we own, something in nature, a person outside our family circle . . . Then we took turns sharing what we’d written. This devotional was so fun, because it made us stop to appreciate the simple things, experiences, and people in our daily life that we are grateful for. Sometimes when we think about gratitude we make it big and intangible—”I’m thankful for relationships,” “I’m thankful for freedom,” “I’m thankful for grace”—and while those things are wonderful, sometimes it also helps our hearts to think, “You know, I’m grateful for my new shoes. And I’m grateful that I get to take piano lessons. And I love jumping in piles of raked leaves.” I especially loved the way this devotional got adults AND kids involved in thinking about gratitude, and sharing our thoughts together! The kids had a lot to say, and we all laughed and smiled a lot. Everyone left feeling thankful and happy, and feeling more connected to God and to each other.
