(Previously Published on Mrs Words Blog)

On Saturday, we celebrated Thanksgiving – Aussie style.

Even though we live in Australia, and it’s during the spring here, we have decided that it is something worth celebrating. We don’t have the Thursday off to celebrate like our American friends, so for the last four years, we have arranged a wonderful Saturday lunch get-together where we invite some of our family friends over for a delicious feast of Turkey and all the trimmings, with Pumpkin Pie for dessert. Then we take the time to celebrate and express our thankfulness.

So, I was up at 4am on Saturday to prepare the Turkey stuffing and get the Turkey in the oven. We spent the rest of the morning cleaning, cooking and setting up for our celebration. By 12.30pm, we were all setup and ready for our beloved guests to arrive.

 Then the guests started to arrive, with all their scrumptious food. Five families came to feast together and celebrate with thankful hearts. It was a lovely time… 

My little house was full of people and it was wonderful. The most important, special part of it all for me was when everyone had eaten the delicious food and the children went off to play. The adults – all 10 of us – were sitting around the table and I took a moment to talk about Thanksgiving.

I asked everyone around the table to think of three things each that they were thankful for this year. The catch was that with the three things, one of them must be a ‘material’ item; one of them must be a ‘godly, christian, spiritual item’ and the third thing could be anything they choose.

So, each one had their turn as we worked our way around the table. It was so wonderful hearing all the incredible things that my friends were thankful for. They came up with some brilliant things and they each spoke from their heart, intimately and openly. It was gratifying to have such raw, honesty conversation. To hear some of them share their journey of growth this past year and what they have learnt to appreciate through their experiences. It was such a blessed time.

My wonderful husband, who is so not a ‘word’s person’, (he is the most opposite of words that one could possibly get) actually flourished when it was his turn. It blessed my heart to hear him speak (which is usually that last thing that he wants to do, in public especially) about his thankfulness for the new, powerful computer that his boss has arranged for him to use at work. Then he blew me away by telling everyone how thankful he is for me – again, fall off my chair moment, ‘cos he is the least expressive person that I know, and compliments never fall off his lips, they usually have to be dragged from him under severe duress, ha!🤪- I was so humbled and grateful that he spoke from his heart and took the opportunity to express his thankfulness. Blown away, I tell you, absolutely blown away!

My list was 1) Books/Words – as my material thing; 2) Worship – as my spiritual/godly item; 3) Friendship – for my free choice.

I chose books/words because, hello! Mrs Words! Lover of books and all things words right here! How amazing is it that we get to speak a language? to communicate with our peers, to verbalise our feelings, frustrations, emotions, thoughts, opinions?

There are 26 letters in our english language and thousands of words that we can make using these simple digits. Then, think of all the languages across the earth, each with their own alphabet and different words to express and convey thoughts to others. The act of verbal communication is such a privilege. The idea that we get to speak and write and read is incredible. Our animal friends are not so lucky, as they are reduced to mere sounds, grunts and howls. I am thankful for words because they allow me to use my creativity and gifts to minister and bless others, which edifies my soul and for that I am so incredibly grateful.

Worship – how can I even begin to express this one. Alongside words, which we use in order to worship our Living Father, is the privilege that we, as human mortals, get to express our love and adoration to our Creator. I am constantly blown away that we have been given permission to enter His courts with praise, to bow down and worship at the throne of God. That we have complete access to our Father in this way. We don’t need to go through a middle man, but through the very act of worship, we get to speak to the heart of God. It’s a direct line. How incredible is that?

I can’t help but feel overwhelmed whenever the beautiful Christmas Carol ‘Oh Come All Ye Faithful’ is played. When we sing “oh come let us adore Him”, my eyes well with tears, as I raise my hands up to my Father, lift my head up to the skies and sing with all my heart. The awesome privilege that we get to ADORE Him. To gaze upon His beauty, with our off-tune, raspy voices and exalt the Maker of the Earth. I am so thankful for worship.

Lastly, I am thankful for Friendship! What would we do without our friends? My thanksgiving day was made special because of the friends that attended. My family live interstate and we are not necessarily close, and my husband’s family live overseas, so we kind of do life without our extended families around. That means that we value the friendships that we have cultivated up here that much more.

Our friends are the community that we connect with. My girlfriends are that ones that see me at my worst and help me through it, and they see me at my best and celebrate with me. We pray for each other, we share meals together, we have play-dates with our children, we borrow and lend items from each other and we are simply just there for each other. I don’t really know how I could have navigated through moving to a new state, starting a new job, going to a new Church, sending the children to a new school, if God didn’t bring some amazing people across my path that I now have the privilege of calling friends. I am so thankful for friendship!

There are so many more things that I am thankful for and so many reasons why, but these are the ones that I shared this past weekend as I celebrated Thanksgiving with my family & friends. May we always keep a thankful heart and remember all the little things that God has done. What are you thankful for?